I’m not gonna say that goggles are the most important part of your paintball gear, but you have to admit that they do take one of the leading places – especially when it comes to safety. I don’t even wanna think about how painful it is to get shot in the head. Hopefully no one gets to experience the pain – but you got to take care of that for yourself…and the best way is to get yourself some goggles. We’re gonna start the goggles reviews with what is said to be the best mask on the market right now, the Dye I3 Pro, although throughout the review you’ll decide for yourself if it really deserves to be called that. we’ll start going through the necessities that one mask should have so it can be called good (what’s left for “the best”). First we’re gonna start with the weight – indeed the Dye I3 Pro is one of the lightest masks on the market right now. The weight is very important issue when it comes to masks. You may not care too much of the weight of your pants, jersey or gun, but trust me when it comes to what you wear on your head you do want something lighter. By this indicator Dye I3 Pro puts the others in its pocket. Same thing goes to the comfort – it is one really comfortable mask. Especially now with the soft ears added you feel like you’re not even wearing a mask. Venting is also very important thing – and it is perfected in the Dye I3 Pro – works great. I’m not arranging things by importance, but if I was visibility would definitely be leading the chart. The visibility with the Dye I3 Pro is not the best, but is indeed pretty good. The mask gives you good visual range – sideways and top-bottom one. And should we even talk about looks – my personal opinion is that this is the best looking mask for now. It really looks great. Check the features before we continue with some of the negative stuff:
• Soft Ears with CoolMax backing, super light injected material. Deflect many of those ears shots without a break.
• Comes standard with advanced anti fog High Definition Single Lens.
• 2 stage foam is specifically designed to sheet sweat and moisture away from your face. Open and closed cell foam technology provides comfort and moisture wicking properties.
• The patented Invision3 Multi-Directional Venting will throw your voice farther and clearer than any other vented mask on the field. Utilizing precise blade angling and a proven venting configuration, the Invision3 Multi-*Directional Venting will make communication with your teammates effortless, as if there were no vocal obstructions.
• Tri-Mold Soft Flex Technology offers various mask flexibility without sacrificing safety or performance. *Utilizing a revolutionary process of co-molding, the Dye design team has developed a firm base frame, coupled with a very flexible facemask and patented venting system.
• Silicone is out, woven rubber is in. The Invision3 retention strap system needs to be adjusted once and once only. Designed to fit your head and stay that way, like it should. The elasticity of the woven rubber straps will out last the competition. .
• The anatomically correct Invision3 Pro mask system offers the best of comfort and performance for the player. Tested at twice the current ASTM impact standards for safety. Good protection is the key.
• Low profile and removable, the Invision3 visor adjusts vertically to provide maximum shade for your eyes and protection for your forehead.
• The Invision’s compound radius lens gives the player the ultimate in vertical / horizontal peripheral vision and optical clarity. Setting the standard in visual performance, the dual-bowl lens design offers phenomenal visual performance.
• The Invision3 goggle frame is molded from tear-resistant polyurethane and is designed with maximum flow-through ventilation. Designed to be anatomically correct and low profile to your face, the Invision goggle frame is a first in the paintball industry.
• Adjustable comfort chinstrap to secure goggle during active play.
Everything sounds great so far, but there are some things that pull the mask ranking strongly down. I mentioned that the visibility is pretty good – I was taking about the range of visibility you get when you wear the mask – what people complain about, though, is that the mask comes with single plane lenses that fog up quite a bit. You get that this is quite a problem, right? Yes there are ways to prevent fogging, but when spending so much money on something you expect it to be flawless, or if not flawless at least with minor inconveniences. Fogging is not a minor inconvenience. And if Dye only used the HD duel plane lens they make this problem would never even occurred. Well, guess they do need things to upgrade for the next versions, right? You can fix the problem yourself by getting the HD dual lens in addition, but yet again why should you? Another thing players complain about is the chin strap, although this is personal – some like it some don’t. Colors – you get quite a choice – white, black, gold, blue and red (all of them awesomely looking). As to the price – it is very pricy…costing $99.95 this is probably one of the most expensive goggles on the market right now. Is it worthy? You have to decide for yourself. My advice – if you have the money get it.
