The F1 Magic is a goggle we reported on last season but its so cool that it has made its way back to our Front Page.

Here is what Popular Science had to say about it. Popular Science

There are primarily two ways that skiers and snowboarders deal with the constantly changing light conditions: 1) stop mid-run to swap out, say, darker lenses for lighter ones; 2) crash. The F1 Magic, however, puts the kibosh on such groove-scotching pit stops. Dyed liquid crystals on a flexible substrate are sandwiched between transparent lenses. When off, the liquid crystals align perpendicular to the lens surface, allowing light to pass through with a soft tint. When on, a charge snaps crystals into a spiral pattern. This blocks the light passing through and darkens the

lens like blinds. A button on top of the small six-volt battery case turns the tint on and off. The goggles also come in handy for inconspicuous scoping après-ski. 200 hours on one battery; $210

Here is the official story from uvexsports.com

Skiers and snowboarders constantly face the problem of changing light conditions on the hill. Until now, the answer has been to carry two pairs of goggles, or switch to the inferior protection of sunglasses, or struggle to see in flat

light with a dark lens or squint when the sun comes out while you are wearing a high-contrast lens. The F1 Magic puts an end to that with the touch of a button.

A high-tech solution to a simple problem, state-of-the-art liquid crystal technology is applied to a double lens to produce a goggle that can instantly switch from a high-contrast lens ideal for flat light to a darker lens ideal for bright sun.

* Lens tint: VALiD Lens from AlphaMicron Inc.
Switch from high-contrast lasergold lite to darker lasergold with the touch of a button (30% darker).
* Lens Type: Cylindrical double lens with a liquid crystal substrate sandwiched between the lenses.
* Frame Color: silver metallic
* Goggle Size: medium
* Helmet Compatible?: Yes

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