Chamelo Music Shield Sunglasses Review

Photochromic sunglasses automatically change tint with the light. What about the times that you need to change the tint immediately? Or manually set it to the exact tint you want? With regular photochromic you can’t.

Chamelo Sunglasses is pushing the boundaries of sunglasses that can change tint at the push of a button, well….slide of a finger.

Chief Brand Officer NBA all-star Stephon Marbury says their new shades are high performance….. and a bit different.

We’re looking at the Music Shield model of their new line of sunglasses to see if they can hack it out on the trails….and what electrochromic really means.

Specs

Electrochromic

The Music Shield lenses aren’t photochromic but electrochromic.

Photochromic sunglasses tint when exposed to UV light. Electrochromic sunglasses change with a button or touch control. A liquid crystal film on the lenses change as you slide the controls. The crystals align in a certain way when voltage is applied, blocking some of the light.

A slide touch control on the right arm adjusts the tint from 63% visible light going through to only 17% visible light going through.

Some brands of photochromic sunglasses can take minutes to adjust to different light. Chamelo’s Eclipse HVL lenses do it in 0.1 seconds.

The tint control takes a little bit of practice to get your finger on it every time but it’s pretty quick once you know where to touch. A little bit more of a guide on the arms would be nice.

Chamelo has 3 different versions of the Eclipse lens. The HVL on the Music Shield adjust from 63% to 17%. 63% is a light Category 1 tint. 17% just catches the light end of Category 3.

Their Alpha lens (like on their Falcon frames) adjust from 38 to 4%. A new version that hasn’t been released yet, dubbed Xpanse, will range from 63 to 6%. If they can make these work, they’ll be the ultimate all-condition lenses.

63% VLT is good for low light conditions. It’s a bit dark at late dusk or a dark, rainy day but nice for everything else. 17% is a good mid-range tint but isn’t quite enough for bright sun on the water when you really need a dark tint.

Because photochromic sunglasses usually react to UV light, they don’t usually tint in the car as most windshields filter UV light. With the Music Shield you can set the tint to your liking.

One downside to the electrochromic lenses is they require power to tint darker. You can wear them any time at the lighter end (63%). To darken the lenses, they need to be powered on. I don’t know how they fit a battery in these things but it’s amazing it can still power the lenses for 100 hours.

Music

The Shield has 2 versions, regular and Music. The Music comes with, you guessed it, music. They have built-in speakers and microphones.

The speakers are small and don’t have much bass but you can hear things around you. They’re standard speakers and not bone-conducting. They sound good. Riding through traffic, you can still hear vehicles beside you or animals on the trails.

They automatically connect to your phone when powered on. Most of the time this is good but sometimes I want to be connected to my truck instead. The bluetooth tends to stay paired if it’s already connected with something first.

There is one multi-function button under the right arm. It’s easy to find and a convenient placement. Holding it turns it on or off, but has a couple other functions. There are no volume controls so that’s all handled on your phone.

Music Controls on multi-function button:

• Long Press: Power on/off
• Single press: Play/Pause
• Double press: Next song
• Triple press: Previous song

With most headphones, the speaker is buried in your ear, but with the Music Shield, they’re on the arms. Other people can hear the music a little bit if you have it on loud but it’s very quiet. They are pointed straight down into your ears and keep it focused.

Phone Calls

The Shield’s can actually take calls fairly well. The mic is good for picking up your voice. It sounds a bit like being on speakerphone but it’s clear. The speakers are very quiet to hear the other person. It would be good if the volume could be higher.

Call controls

• Answer/end call: single press
• Reject call: double press

Comfort

I was surprised with how comfortable the Music Shields are. I assumed anything electronic hanging off your face was going to be heavy and annoying.

At 50 grams, they’re slightly heavier than regular sunglasses but only by a few grams. But they don’t feel heavier than regular sunglasses. the weight is further back and balanced. I’ve worn shades with glasses lenses that were more difficult to keep on.

Wearing them driving, paddling, hiking, and at the beach was no issue for the grip. They stayed in place very well. Even mountain biking in the rain, I was dripping with sweat and rain, they easily stayed exactly where I wanted them.

Battery and Charging

Having a battery is a double-edged sword. It means they can change tint in 0.1 seconds for 100 hours and play music. It also means you have to charge them.

The charger is a proprietary magnetic attachment. The other end is just plain, rectangular USB-A. The pins are easy to line up with the magnets on the outside. It’s strong enough to hold the charger to the pins but not too much that it makes unplugging a hassle. I would have preferred a USB-C since I have many but the magnets are easier to use.

A small LED on the inside of the right arm blinks red with low battery and the glasses beep softly every few minutes about 20 minutes before the battery dies.

That LED shows red when it’s plugged in and charging as well. It goes blue when fully charged.

Changing tint barely takes any power so you get 100 hours of only doing that. If you’re playing music, then it’s less, only 6.5 hours. A combination of both will be somewhere in between the two.

Charging gets to 80% in only 30 min so a few minutes of charging can easily last the day if it’s low.

When the battery dies they go back to their slightly tinted 63% VLT. I’d prefer it to be darker when the battery dies but I’m not sure that’s possible with the liquid crystals.

Final Thoughts

Version 1 of a totally new type of product is often clunky, hard to use, and uncomfortable. Chamelo have done an amazing job making something brand new for the industry but also comfortable, lightweight, and easy to use.

The small speakers are perfect for listening to music while being aware of your surroundings. If you need to chat with anyone or listen for cars or animals, you still can. I listen to music constantly but don’t always have my earbuds with me. It was nice to start some tunes anywhere.

Driving with them was great. I could set the tint to what I wanted quickly. Working out, riding, and hiking in them was also great. They provide a wide field of view and stayed exactly where I wanted them even with sweat and rain.

If you want darker lenses, the Xpanse lenses are coming soon. The 63% to 6% VLT will make for an absolutely do-everything lens. I have my fingers crossed for a polarized style for these. They will be the perfect sunglasses.

Just don’t forget to charge your sunglasses.

Price: $349 CAD ($249 USD)

Highly recommended for working out, hiking, biking, and running.

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