I first came across Scicon Sports when I was looking at the Italian brand's bike bags. The 1980 founded manufacturer has long impressed with its well designed and high quality products in that sphere: CW’s review of the Scicon Aerocomfort 3.0 Road Bike Travel Bag is a recent example of a product that has scored well with us.
But bags aren’t the only cycling product that Scicon produces. Back in 2019 Scicon entered the sports eyewear market and 14 models currently sit under its webpage on cycling sunglasses.
I’ve been testing the Scicon Aeroscope model to see if Scicon can match its reputation for quality products in the sunglasses arena - and measure up against the stiff competition from the best sunglasses for cycling.
Scicon Aeroscope: construction
Scicon’s cycling sunglasses range starts at £125 for the Aerowing and goes up to £220 for its high performance Aeroscope models with a photochromic lens (for varied light conditions). The Aeroscope I’ve been testing is specced with the Multimirror Bronze lens, which comes in at a slightly lower price of £195. For this price, you also receive a multi-use soft bag (with an RRP of £30), a clear spare lens and a recycled microfibre eyewear pouch.
“Tailoring your overall eyewear fit is vital to performance without limits”, Scicon says, and, with this in mind, the Italian brand has specced its top-end offering full of features that allow customisation. The length of the temple arms and the height of the nosepiece can both be adjusted to fine-tune the overall fit, and, in turn, aid comfort and performance.
The frame itself is made from Grilamid TR90 which is a bio-based plastic polymer. Scicon isn’t the only sunglasses manufacturer in the cycling sphere to opt for this eco-friendly material. In fact the last sunglasses I reviewed, Tifosi’s Rail Clarion Fototec, used it too. Across the internet, eyewear manufacturers boast about its durability. It’s designed to flex, which helps the resistance to stress and fatigue. Such properties are certainly desirable for regular use and the demands of cycling.
With a lens height of 67mm, these are on the larger side of the spectrum. Scicon says the lens size is XXL and I agree with them! To put this into perspective, I measured Oakley’s Sutro Lites and these are only 55mm.
Next, let’s talk lens specs. The Multimirror Bronze lens has a Visible Light Transmission (VLT) of 17%. The lower the % the darker the lens, and the better suited it is to really bright days. On the other side of things, if the VLT is low then the sunglasses won’t be as suitable at night, or even on very overcast days. With its 17% VLT, the Aeroscopes are your friend on sunny daytime rides, but you’ll be wanting to slot them into your helmet holes or jersey pocket if you get caught out on a longer ride into dusk and night.
Scicon has applied an Oleophobic coating. This is designed to fend off greasy finger marks and smudges, and so very useful for ensuring the lens stays clean and clear. Alongside this, Scicon has used a Hydrophobic coating to repel water droplets, and it helps to eliminate the fogging effect on glasses.
These lenses also have a mirrored coating which is designed to help reflect light to reduce glare. This feature is particularly useful for sporting activities that take place near snow or water, but less relevant for cycling. Still, I guess it could come in useful if you also enjoy a wider variety of sports, such as mountaineering or sailing, for instance.
Scicon is (not-so)-quietly confident about the quality of this lens - hence why it shouts about its Lifetime Guarantee on scratched lenses with its free replacement program.
The ride
Unboxing Scicon’s Aeroscope and holding these in my hands for the first time, it was obvious that high quality materials have been used. The frame itself feels incredibly solid, and the lens looks very slick in Bronze.
Instead of cutouts under the top of the frame - which you typically find on performance sunglasses - Scicon has opted for a single small vent above the nose-piece. The Aeroscopes also sit quite far away from the face, noticeably more than other sunnies I’ve tested. The combined benefit of both of these features is that enough air is able to circulate, and, thanks to this, I found that my sweat didn’t just steam up the glasses when putting in efforts on the climbs. But even though these glasses are so well-ventilated, I found that the wide-wrapping and tall design still did an excellent job at protecting my eyes from grit, road spray and bugs.
The nose piece is adjustable: you simply squidge it or push it into the position that feels right for you. I found that it holds this position when riding, but I would say that I did find the nosepiece to be much firmer than the one on the Oakley Sutro Lites, for example. Scicon’s nosepiece is not at all soft to the touch, and when riding, it became uncomfortable by the end of an hour riding. I tried widening the fit to see if that would help, but I wasn’t able to find a better balance between comfort and security, unfortunately.
The arms can also be adjusted from 120mm to 130mm, too, by sliding the end of the arm in or pushing it out - depending on whether you need a smaller or larger gap between your face and ears. I can’t say that I needed to make use of this custom-fit feature, but if you struggle with the fit on other sunnies, you may find that this is the adjustment you’ve been looking for.
Value and conclusion
The price tag of £195 is one of the steepest I’ve come across. Although it is worth (re)highlighting that Scicon has thrown in a multi-use soft bag, a clear spare lens and a recycled microfibre eyewear pouch. Plus a Lifetime Guarantee. You do get a lot more than just the sunnies alone.
I have been impressed by the lens and quality of the Scicon Aeroscopes, but you can find similar performance for less. For example, Oakley’s Prizm lens is also of very high quality and its Sutro Lite Sweep sunglasses cost much less at £161. You can even get frameless sunnies for as little as $79.95 / £109.99 with Tifosi’s Rail Clarion Fototec sunglasses.
Overall, these are high quality performance sunglasses with a fantastically sharp lens and feel built to last. If you’re someone who finds the size of other sunnies doesn’t quite work for you, then the ability to fine-tune the fit, especially the arm length, could be particularly handy. However, if you find that the bridge of your nose is easily irritated, then you may find the nosepad of these is too firm for you (as it was for me).
