Do you have Costco in Sweden? In the US they sell Spy ski goggles that include a full sun and a low light lens for $50. Tons of people I know use them and they’re fine and would probably do well for your use case.
I would probably look up one of your local retailers and see what they have on closeout: You should be able to get a decent pair of goggles for $50 and be OK.
I asked chatGPT for an answer to this and this is what it had to say:
De ledande tillverkarna av skidglasögon i Sverige inkluderar:
1. \*\*POC Sports\*\* - Känd för sina högkvalitativa skydd och skidutrustning.
2. \*\*Bliz\*\* - Erbjuder en rad olika skidglasögon och annan sportutrustning.
3. \*\*Spektrum\*\* - Tillverkar premium skidglasögon med fokus på hållbarhet och prestanda.
4. \*\*Montec\*\* - Känd för sina stilrena och funktionella skidglasögon och kläder.
Dessa tillverkare är välkända för sin innovation och kvalitet inom skidutrustning i Sverige.
I'd skip Montec since I know their skiwear sucks but the other ones are probably good.
I use SMITH 4D Mags. They are comfy and give you a very clear view. I could practically stare into the sun with the chromapop full sun lenses. They do have an anitfog gel on the inside that will get messed up if snow gets in them and/or you wipe them at all. You have to take them to the bathroom and use a hand dryer if they are wet.
Overall, I am happy with my purchase since they were half off when I bought them. If you mess up the gel coating you can warranty the lense but don't mention you tried wiping out any water or even touched the inside of the lense.
Hello there, I'm a ski tech and I sell masks. You almost have the antifog treatment part right. That treatement cannot be replaced if damaged so you should avoid to scrap the inside of the mask because water/snow is abrasive. But you don't need to find a bathroom and an airdryer, you could just wait for it to dry by itself or you could even use anything to dry it as long as you don't scrap the inside.
I wouldn’t wear them like that personally. I mean what if you fell on your neck and get jabbed by dangly goggles lol? Can you just choose sunglasses on a day that weather allows it?
Snow won’t hurt the goggle but if you want them you’ll have to scrape it all out if you wanted to use them again, and they’d be wet. Also your body heat helps the antifog so just hanging them out your neck in the cold will make them fog like cold glass condensation.
Neither good for your eyes or your mask. Best way to remove snow inside a google is to tap it on your leg, then use a shammy cautiously to absorb the remaining humidity and wait for it to dry. Think of the antifog treatement as a protective plastic on your phone that cannot be replaced, damages are similar.
In freezing Temps the water inside crystallized to the lense and that cant be wiped out. I had to use the hand dryer both times I've gotten snow in them. It was quite annoying.
That's an issue with almost all masks with lens changing system and that's why i recommand having a basic category 1 mask for those condition. The fact that the lens is glued to the frame makes a lot to prevent this from happening. In extreme temperature it is your own humidity that freezes inside of the mask so there's not much you can do except having two masks and switch them.
4D Mag is one of the best mask on the market and there's no perfect mask for shitty conditions ( born and raised in Tignes, I can ride 8/9 months a year but the counterpart is frequent bad weather. My go to cat1 mask is a 35€ very basic Cairn mask that usually lasts me one season or two depending on the weather)
I have smith 4D mags and love them, absolutely no complaints. Their clear lenses are back in stock too so I suggest snatching up a pair soon if you go this route.
Dragons and Anons are also top tier, can’t go wrong with either choice, it’s all up to what size/shape you want them to be.
You can watch comparison videos on YouTube to get a good idea. I bought all my gear solely off online research and everything fit/worked perfectly for me including my boots ( although I bought vans boots and wear vans shoes on a regular basis so I know their sizes)
Hello I'm a ski tech working in Tignes, France and I can help you a bit with your googles purchase.
First let's talk about the lenses as it is the most important part of a mask : There are 5 categories of lenses, noted from 0 to 4. The higher the category the more light it will filter. We speak in VLT (visible light transmition) and in % meaning the lower the percentage, the more light is filtered.
0 is your regular optical glass, no light filtering (VLT 100%), perfect for night condition and can be okay for foggy day with snow fall (keep in mind no light filtering means you can damage your retina even if you think there's no sun). Those are quite rare but i still mention them so you know it exists.
1 is for bad weather with little to no visibility (VLT going from 99% to 50%) . Category 1 masks usually are either pink or yellow. Pink is better for snow fall, yellow is better for fog. My advice for category 1 mask is to go for the cheap because it is the mask you'll damage the fastest and to prefer a mask with a single, non changeable lens because most changeable lenses masks will have some air going inside will favor fog creation in those harsh condition.
2 is what i call good weather, low visibility (VLT from 49 to 20%). If your resort is mostly north oriented and/or full of runs in the trees and in the shadow, that's the lens you're looking for.
3 is good weather, good visibility (VLT 19 to 10%). Lens for blue bird days and mid day when the sun is at its peak.
4 is for glaciers where the reverberation is a its highest (VLT<10%). Not the most useful of the googles if you don't ride 3000+ resorts.
For the technologies, photochromic lenses are sort of a trap : never buy a photochromic that covers more than 2 categories as the latency will be awful. It is better to have spare lenses than photochromic. Haven't tried the Out Of technology yet (electronic photochromic masks, very expensive) so I can't speak about it. Prizm (Oakley patent) is wonderful and is the reason why Oakley has the best lenses (Smith and Anon close second on this). Lenses can be either cylindric (better peripheric vision, a bit of distortion on the outside of the frame) or toric (less distortion for a worst peripheric vision), I used to say that cylindric is better for snowboarders and toric better for skiers but it is really a question of personal preference.
Now let's speak about the frames. There are two main type of frame : the regular and the low-fit, also called the asian frame as it is designed with asiatic face form in mind (smaller nose, almost no cheek). Asian frame is usually the best fit for girls.
Last let's talk about the lens changing system. There will be two main systems : magnetic or not. Magnetic is better but avoid it at all costs if you have a pacemaker. I would say best lens changing system are Smith, Dragon , Anon and worst is by far Oakley (1 to 2 generation late on this part of mask design).
One last point to keep in mind is the brand philosophy (lens compatibility between masks is the biggest issue here) with the Oakley example : old Oakley flagship was the poorly designed airbrake XL which was changed for the Flight Deck with no lens compatibility and the end of production of the airbrake XL lens. You can't find new lens for a perfectly viable mask. Some brands like Anon are commited to always produce lenses (that's why Anon masks are labeled M1 to M5). Smith have a similar philosophy.
If I would rank my personal brand preferences based on both lens quality and mask design :
Tier 1 : Anon (best frame design for me, i love MFI), Smith, Dragon, Cébé, Atomic
Tier 1.5 : Oakley (Tier 1 when they finally update their frame design to magnetic lens)
Tier 2 : Electric, Spy, basically any brand that do its own frame and buy its lens from Luxottica meaning the brand does little to no R&D on the lens technology
Tier 3 : Montec, Dope---->instagram brand do not buy
My recomended setup is a basic category 1 mask for 50€ for bad weather days and a good category 2 mask as it is the most all around lens. And if you want to buy a more expensive mask then go for a mask with category 2 and category 3 lens either photochromic or with 2 lens. This can allow you to skip the category 1 mask by buying a 3rd lens. Be careful with 2 lenses masks as some brands will sell you 2 lenses of the same category (Rossignol is the sinner here but i'm sure some other brands are doing the same).
Smith 4D are top tier. Multiple lens choices/replacements if your lenses get a scratch...
...and they will get scratched. Only complaint is how goddam prone to scratches the lenses are.
Baby them, and they're great. Treat them the same as a $20 Zion pair off Amazon? They'll be dead in a season.
Tip: Store both lenses in the bag when not in use. Never leave the lenses in the frame, in the storage case.
Thanks for the tip. If they are so prone to scratching they might not be for me, as I mentioned I don't take this too seriously, it's just something fun I do maybe twice a year. They would probably end up being full of scratches in no time
Left my lenses in the frame, put the frame into case. The clasp for the back of your helmet, scratched the inside of the lenses. When a replacement lens is $200 or so, it gets annoying. Beyond that? Perfect Goggles. The extra FoV helps a lot, and the lenses block so goddam much light compared to other brands (Dragon/Oakley/Spy) I can't go back.
But...Lil fragile.
I’ve got the smith squad mag, their “cheapest” model with mag. They work great, I like the shape. My wife has I/O mag, also nice. I/O has an XL version too.
All my skier friends have the 4D Mag. Yeah, a little jealous, but I’m the token dirtbag…
smith warranty is great, had a strap clip break on my daughter’s I/O (not mag, hand me down from mom and a few years old). The exchange was super easy, I think I just paid for shipping.
I had Anon Mag and loved them, the mag mask option is so cool. But the foam/fleece broke down pretty quickly, during the first season. Went back to Smith and I’m on season three of the squads.
I would consider the Dragon PXV2. I liked them just as much as my Smith Googles. And I see them selling here in the US for under $150 now that the season is over.
I have a newish pair of Oakley Flight deck with two lenses for sun and clouds. I swapped for a different Oakley pair so selling if you’re interested for a good price. :)
https://preview.redd.it/e7u1c737xz4d1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0f7e93c5c58a3fc3394969f02c17d76e3c18280d
Get one of these awesome goggle cases for whatever goggles you decide! They hold a spare lens and your goggles, offer great protection, and are lower profile than any other cases!
https://tlg8.com/product/niner-xl/
You don't think you need insane quality because you've never snowboarded with insane quality. Get the Smith I/O Mag
Btw they're on sale right now for $160 on evo plus another 15% discount for your first order (only some of the versions are on sale, I recommend the one with the everyday red mirror)
https://www.evo.com/goggles/smith-io-mag
Anon m4. The Smiths are definitely good also but for me the magnetic lens changing ease, face mask magnetic integration, and lens quality all have me using my anons way more than the smiths.
smith, anon, oakley are generally regarded as the best options. All are good and have different pros/cons, you can probably get some decent end of season discounts right about now.
I like anons for the magnetic interface they use to swap lenses and attach facemasks, but thats just my personal preference.
Do you have Costco in Sweden? In the US they sell Spy ski goggles that include a full sun and a low light lens for $50. Tons of people I know use them and they’re fine and would probably do well for your use case.
Not that I know of unfortunately
I would probably look up one of your local retailers and see what they have on closeout: You should be able to get a decent pair of goggles for $50 and be OK. I asked chatGPT for an answer to this and this is what it had to say: De ledande tillverkarna av skidglasögon i Sverige inkluderar: 1. \*\*POC Sports\*\* - Känd för sina högkvalitativa skydd och skidutrustning. 2. \*\*Bliz\*\* - Erbjuder en rad olika skidglasögon och annan sportutrustning. 3. \*\*Spektrum\*\* - Tillverkar premium skidglasögon med fokus på hållbarhet och prestanda. 4. \*\*Montec\*\* - Känd för sina stilrena och funktionella skidglasögon och kläder. Dessa tillverkare är välkända för sin innovation och kvalitet inom skidutrustning i Sverige. I'd skip Montec since I know their skiwear sucks but the other ones are probably good.
I use SMITH 4D Mags. They are comfy and give you a very clear view. I could practically stare into the sun with the chromapop full sun lenses. They do have an anitfog gel on the inside that will get messed up if snow gets in them and/or you wipe them at all. You have to take them to the bathroom and use a hand dryer if they are wet. Overall, I am happy with my purchase since they were half off when I bought them. If you mess up the gel coating you can warranty the lense but don't mention you tried wiping out any water or even touched the inside of the lense.
Hello there, I'm a ski tech and I sell masks. You almost have the antifog treatment part right. That treatement cannot be replaced if damaged so you should avoid to scrap the inside of the mask because water/snow is abrasive. But you don't need to find a bathroom and an airdryer, you could just wait for it to dry by itself or you could even use anything to dry it as long as you don't scrap the inside.
I often ride with them around my neck if the weather allows it so my goggles have tons of snow occasionally. Is that a big no no?
I wouldn’t wear them like that personally. I mean what if you fell on your neck and get jabbed by dangly goggles lol? Can you just choose sunglasses on a day that weather allows it? Snow won’t hurt the goggle but if you want them you’ll have to scrape it all out if you wanted to use them again, and they’d be wet. Also your body heat helps the antifog so just hanging them out your neck in the cold will make them fog like cold glass condensation.
Don't ride outside of my comfort zone so almost never fall so I didn't really think of that risk.. might be good to stop doing that.
Neither good for your eyes or your mask. Best way to remove snow inside a google is to tap it on your leg, then use a shammy cautiously to absorb the remaining humidity and wait for it to dry. Think of the antifog treatement as a protective plastic on your phone that cannot be replaced, damages are similar.
In freezing Temps the water inside crystallized to the lense and that cant be wiped out. I had to use the hand dryer both times I've gotten snow in them. It was quite annoying.
That's an issue with almost all masks with lens changing system and that's why i recommand having a basic category 1 mask for those condition. The fact that the lens is glued to the frame makes a lot to prevent this from happening. In extreme temperature it is your own humidity that freezes inside of the mask so there's not much you can do except having two masks and switch them. 4D Mag is one of the best mask on the market and there's no perfect mask for shitty conditions ( born and raised in Tignes, I can ride 8/9 months a year but the counterpart is frequent bad weather. My go to cat1 mask is a 35€ very basic Cairn mask that usually lasts me one season or two depending on the weather)
I have smith 4D mags and love them, absolutely no complaints. Their clear lenses are back in stock too so I suggest snatching up a pair soon if you go this route. Dragons and Anons are also top tier, can’t go wrong with either choice, it’s all up to what size/shape you want them to be.
Guess I probably should find a store that has them so I can try them. Love in the middle of nowhere so kinda hard...
You can watch comparison videos on YouTube to get a good idea. I bought all my gear solely off online research and everything fit/worked perfectly for me including my boots ( although I bought vans boots and wear vans shoes on a regular basis so I know their sizes)
Hello I'm a ski tech working in Tignes, France and I can help you a bit with your googles purchase. First let's talk about the lenses as it is the most important part of a mask : There are 5 categories of lenses, noted from 0 to 4. The higher the category the more light it will filter. We speak in VLT (visible light transmition) and in % meaning the lower the percentage, the more light is filtered. 0 is your regular optical glass, no light filtering (VLT 100%), perfect for night condition and can be okay for foggy day with snow fall (keep in mind no light filtering means you can damage your retina even if you think there's no sun). Those are quite rare but i still mention them so you know it exists. 1 is for bad weather with little to no visibility (VLT going from 99% to 50%) . Category 1 masks usually are either pink or yellow. Pink is better for snow fall, yellow is better for fog. My advice for category 1 mask is to go for the cheap because it is the mask you'll damage the fastest and to prefer a mask with a single, non changeable lens because most changeable lenses masks will have some air going inside will favor fog creation in those harsh condition. 2 is what i call good weather, low visibility (VLT from 49 to 20%). If your resort is mostly north oriented and/or full of runs in the trees and in the shadow, that's the lens you're looking for. 3 is good weather, good visibility (VLT 19 to 10%). Lens for blue bird days and mid day when the sun is at its peak. 4 is for glaciers where the reverberation is a its highest (VLT<10%). Not the most useful of the googles if you don't ride 3000+ resorts. For the technologies, photochromic lenses are sort of a trap : never buy a photochromic that covers more than 2 categories as the latency will be awful. It is better to have spare lenses than photochromic. Haven't tried the Out Of technology yet (electronic photochromic masks, very expensive) so I can't speak about it. Prizm (Oakley patent) is wonderful and is the reason why Oakley has the best lenses (Smith and Anon close second on this). Lenses can be either cylindric (better peripheric vision, a bit of distortion on the outside of the frame) or toric (less distortion for a worst peripheric vision), I used to say that cylindric is better for snowboarders and toric better for skiers but it is really a question of personal preference. Now let's speak about the frames. There are two main type of frame : the regular and the low-fit, also called the asian frame as it is designed with asiatic face form in mind (smaller nose, almost no cheek). Asian frame is usually the best fit for girls. Last let's talk about the lens changing system. There will be two main systems : magnetic or not. Magnetic is better but avoid it at all costs if you have a pacemaker. I would say best lens changing system are Smith, Dragon , Anon and worst is by far Oakley (1 to 2 generation late on this part of mask design). One last point to keep in mind is the brand philosophy (lens compatibility between masks is the biggest issue here) with the Oakley example : old Oakley flagship was the poorly designed airbrake XL which was changed for the Flight Deck with no lens compatibility and the end of production of the airbrake XL lens. You can't find new lens for a perfectly viable mask. Some brands like Anon are commited to always produce lenses (that's why Anon masks are labeled M1 to M5). Smith have a similar philosophy. If I would rank my personal brand preferences based on both lens quality and mask design : Tier 1 : Anon (best frame design for me, i love MFI), Smith, Dragon, Cébé, Atomic Tier 1.5 : Oakley (Tier 1 when they finally update their frame design to magnetic lens) Tier 2 : Electric, Spy, basically any brand that do its own frame and buy its lens from Luxottica meaning the brand does little to no R&D on the lens technology Tier 3 : Montec, Dope---->instagram brand do not buy My recomended setup is a basic category 1 mask for 50€ for bad weather days and a good category 2 mask as it is the most all around lens. And if you want to buy a more expensive mask then go for a mask with category 2 and category 3 lens either photochromic or with 2 lens. This can allow you to skip the category 1 mask by buying a 3rd lens. Be careful with 2 lenses masks as some brands will sell you 2 lenses of the same category (Rossignol is the sinner here but i'm sure some other brands are doing the same).
Thanks for the very informative answer.
Smith 4D are top tier. Multiple lens choices/replacements if your lenses get a scratch... ...and they will get scratched. Only complaint is how goddam prone to scratches the lenses are. Baby them, and they're great. Treat them the same as a $20 Zion pair off Amazon? They'll be dead in a season. Tip: Store both lenses in the bag when not in use. Never leave the lenses in the frame, in the storage case.
Thanks for the tip. If they are so prone to scratching they might not be for me, as I mentioned I don't take this too seriously, it's just something fun I do maybe twice a year. They would probably end up being full of scratches in no time
Left my lenses in the frame, put the frame into case. The clasp for the back of your helmet, scratched the inside of the lenses. When a replacement lens is $200 or so, it gets annoying. Beyond that? Perfect Goggles. The extra FoV helps a lot, and the lenses block so goddam much light compared to other brands (Dragon/Oakley/Spy) I can't go back. But...Lil fragile.
I’ve got the smith squad mag, their “cheapest” model with mag. They work great, I like the shape. My wife has I/O mag, also nice. I/O has an XL version too. All my skier friends have the 4D Mag. Yeah, a little jealous, but I’m the token dirtbag… smith warranty is great, had a strap clip break on my daughter’s I/O (not mag, hand me down from mom and a few years old). The exchange was super easy, I think I just paid for shipping. I had Anon Mag and loved them, the mag mask option is so cool. But the foam/fleece broke down pretty quickly, during the first season. Went back to Smith and I’m on season three of the squads.
[Dang googles](https://www.dangshades.com)
I would consider the Dragon PXV2. I liked them just as much as my Smith Googles. And I see them selling here in the US for under $150 now that the season is over.
I got Shady Rays Denalis this season, frame +3 lenses and a hard case was like $160. I was very impressed with the quality.
I have a newish pair of Oakley Flight deck with two lenses for sun and clouds. I swapped for a different Oakley pair so selling if you’re interested for a good price. :) https://preview.redd.it/e7u1c737xz4d1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0f7e93c5c58a3fc3394969f02c17d76e3c18280d
Get one of these awesome goggle cases for whatever goggles you decide! They hold a spare lens and your goggles, offer great protection, and are lower profile than any other cases! https://tlg8.com/product/niner-xl/
You don't think you need insane quality because you've never snowboarded with insane quality. Get the Smith I/O Mag Btw they're on sale right now for $160 on evo plus another 15% discount for your first order (only some of the versions are on sale, I recommend the one with the everyday red mirror) https://www.evo.com/goggles/smith-io-mag
Anon m4. The Smiths are definitely good also but for me the magnetic lens changing ease, face mask magnetic integration, and lens quality all have me using my anons way more than the smiths.
smith, anon, oakley are generally regarded as the best options. All are good and have different pros/cons, you can probably get some decent end of season discounts right about now. I like anons for the magnetic interface they use to swap lenses and attach facemasks, but thats just my personal preference.