Gear Review - Panda Optics Dual Vision ski goggles

Parting ways with hard earned cash, will Panda's Dual Vision goggles be worth the spend?

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I have too many goggles.

Far too many. And yet, for the first time in a long time - over a decade, in fact - I found myself buying a pair, spending actual hard earned money rather than relying on what brands send me to test and review.

If that doesn't tell you, immediately, what I think of both the brand and these goggles, then I don't know what else there is to say.

Oh you clicked through for an actual review? Huh.

Then I guess this is Skiing Unlocked's review of the Panda Optics Dual Vision ski goggles.

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The Brand

Panda are a relative newcomer to an increasingly crowded mid-range goggle market. Founded just over ten years ago in a garage in south-eastern England, they have moved on to become a fully fledged outdoor brand sponsoring big names in the industry, including Chemmy Alcott.

Over time the range has grown and grown, but throughout the brand has stuck to a basic principle: creating high quality gear with an irreverent design twist for the whole family.

This now includes a wide range of goggles for both adults and children starting at a respectable £59, as well as sunglasses many of which are built for mountain biking, and caps and accessories - you will often find me in a Panda cap on my way to or in the mountains.

All of it is adorned with a monotone Panda face and accented with pops and flashes of bright colours. Ideal for standing out in the mountains, these colours define a brand that is as much about having fun as it is about the performance of these pieces.

Sounds right up my street. So what now?

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The Gear

The Dual Vision is the top-of-the-line offering from Panda, the closest they have to that fighter pilot-like look that so often has been the go-to design for "expensive" goggles.

First impressions are strong. They turn up in a box as bright and colourful as the goggles themselves, bright powder blue with the pink twist. I was nervous going for this colour as, whilst I love blue and a statement colour block, this seemed a bit too bright; I needn't have worried, however, as the colour was bright but not powdery and it blended well with both the blue of the rest of my ski gear and popped nicely against the pink of the trim.

I went straight to the lens changing mechanism for these, having been burnt on this in the past. The Dual Vision uses an 8-point magnetic interchange system and comes with two lenses, another thing that is now expected when paying around £160 ($215US) for a pair of goggles.

This system is really, really robust. I took some heavy falls skiing in these and not once did the lens ever pop off; I've come to develop absolute trust in this mechanism, not once doubting its robustness nor questioning its impact on the goggles performance. On occasion this meant it was difficult to get then off when wearing thick gloves, but I'd far prefer this than the other way round!

What about the lenses themselves? As expected, one highlight and one lowlight lens, in the form a seductive deep shade of mirrored, polarised royal blue and the latter a classic clear yellow lens. Both are excellent. I haven't used polarised lenses in the past but found them to be brilliant in creating a clear field of view. There's no special technology in these beyond the polarisation, but I found that I could continue to use the highlight lens even as conditions deteriorated; following a packing faux pas on the way to a weekend in Scotland - where, if the sun comes out, you buy a lottery ticket - I ended up with just the highlight lens. I was still able to see everything and had a great time regardless. The clarity of vision through both the high- and lowlight lenses is seriously good, too, some of the best I've experienced.

The lenses are cylindrical, meaning they don't bulge like a more traditional fighter pilot-style spherical lenses, and flet like it helped to reduce both bulk and weight. And the goggles fitted really well too; I've got a big head and big face, with a big nose to boot, so getting things to fit right under my helmet can be an issue.

Fundamentally, I found the whole thing to work really, really well. There was a quality of construction that is seriously hard to beat, with each and every piece - frame, lens, strap - clearly having been designed and put together with thoughtfulness.

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Drawbacks

Honestly? I'm struggling to think of any.

Perhaps they're not the cheapest goggles on the market, and they are entering a market that is already bustling and crowded and fighting for attention. But I firmly believe they stand out in this market thanks to the irreverent branding and high construction quality.

Otherwise, the PANDA branding on the straps is beginning to crack and fade slightly from the hot pink that it was fresh out of the box. But that is it, and given the beating they have taken with me around the world this winter, I can forgive this.

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Final Thoughts

I loved these goggles this past winter, I really did. They look great, feel great in the hand and on your head, and offer excellent quality of vision, a combination that can be incredibly difficult to find at times.

I've really struggled to fault them, and I can assure you I have put them through their paces this winter.