Best Low Vision Aids: Magnifiers, Telescopes, and Electronic Devices

Low vision optical devices are specialized low vision aids that significantly enhance vision for people with uncorrectable vision loss. These aids fall into two main categories: traditional optical devices and electronic magnifiers.

Traditional optical devices, which include powerful handheld magnifiers, stand magnifiers, strong magnifying reading glasses, and small telescopes, feature vastly increased magnification power, stronger prescription strengths, and higher-quality optics compared to regular glasses. These superior components bend or refract light more effectively, creating a larger and clearer image.

How Low Vision Aids Work: A Task-Specific Approach

A key principle of low vision care is that your aids must be task-specific. Just as a carpenter uses different tools for different jobs, you will use different low vision aids for various everyday activities.

A low vision specialist prescribes a custom set of devices to meet your specific needs. For example, you might use:

One or two magnifiers for reading or writing

Another device for distance tasks, like watching television or identifying faces

A separate tool for working on a computer screen

Another device entirely for hobbies like sewing or crafting

Furthermore, a low vision specialist often recommends specialized sunglasses to protect your eyes from damaging UV and blue light, reduce glare, and improve your ability to see clearly across different lighting conditions.

If you have low vision, your standard prescription glasses typically cannot provide enough help for both distance and near tasks. You will likely need multiple optical devices to perform the full range of daily activities you enjoy. Many people with low vision successfully use four or five different aids to manage their complete range of daily tasks.

Consulting a Low Vision Specialist

To determine the best low vision aids for your specific lifestyle, consult an eye doctor who specializes in low vision. This low vision specialist conducts a comprehensive eye exam and low vision exam and then prescribes devices that directly address your personal goals.

You can significantly help your doctor by listing the tasks or activities that matter most to you and sharing that list during your exam. It’s also helpful to bring samples of materials you use daily, such as mail, bills, or needlework.

Training Ensures Success

Receiving a prescription for a low vision aid is only the first step. The low vision specialist ensures that you receive thorough training on how to use the prescribed devices, such as magnifiers or telescopic glasses, effectively and efficiently.

For any optical device to be truly effective and comfortable, you must:

Motivate yourself to use the device consistently for specific tasks

Trust that the doctor prescribed the correct, high-quality device

Understand how to maximize the device’s potential

Recognize both the device’s capabilities and its limitations

Electronic Magnification: Video Magnifiers (CCTVs)

Video magnifiers [also called electronic magnifiers or Closed-Circuit Televisions (CCTVs)] represent a critical category of modern low vision aids. These devices use a camera to capture an image and then display a highly magnified, high-contrast version on a screen.

Video magnifiers offer a superior solution for many people because they can achieve magnification levels that are significantly higher than those of traditional optical devices, often exceeding 70x. They also eliminate the need to hold materials very close to the eye, making reading and writing much more comfortable.

Electronic magnifiers generally come in three formats:

Desktop Video Magnifiers: These stationary units feature a large screen and a built-in platform where you place your reading material. They are ideal for extended use at home or work.

Portable Video Magnifiers: These are smaller, battery-powered devices with screens ranging from 3 to 13 inches. They are perfect for on-the-go reading of menus, labels, and prices.

Wearable Devices (Smart Glasses): Some devices use advanced cameras and software to process and project the surrounding world onto small screens directly in front of the wearer’s eyes, providing magnification and enhanced contrast for both near and distance viewing.

Advantages of Video Magnifiers:

Some advantages include:

Variable Magnification and Contrast: Users can easily adjust magnification levels and change text/background colors (e.g., white text on a black background) to maximize comfort.

Enhanced Working Distance: You can sit comfortably upright while reading or writing, unlike with traditional magnifiers, which require you to hold materials very close.

Writing Capability: Many models allow you to write notes, checks, or fill out forms directly underneath the camera.

Traditional Low Vision Optical Devices

Traditional low vision optical devices fall into two main categories:

Near Optical Devices: Help you perform close-up, detailed viewing tasks like reading, writing, sewing, and crafting.

Distance Optical Devices: Help you see objects beyond arm’s reach for quick “spot” viewing or long-term tasks, such as reading street signs, spotting bus numbers, watching television, or viewing scenery.

Near Optical Devices (Magnification for Close Work)

These devices help you perform close-up tasks, such as reading, writing, and fine handwork.

Stand Magnifiers

Stand magnifiers offer one of the simplest solutions for reading. You place the magnifier directly on the page, and the lens automatically sets the focus for you. Many models now include built-in lights for optimal illumination.

Pros: They rest flat on the page (no tiring holding or shaking), focus automatically, work well for extended reading periods, and can be easily combined with regular glasses.

Cons: They are bulkier than handheld models (less portable), and you must get close to the lens to maximize the field of view.

Handheld Magnifiers

A handheld magnifier is ideal for quick, portable “spot” reading. You can use them to read a menu in a dim restaurant, check prices or labels in a store, or read appliance dials at home. They come in pocket sizes and often feature a built-in bright light.

Pros: Most people learn to use them quickly, they are highly portable, and they provide helpful illumination (especially in dark settings).

Cons: You cannot use them for extended reading sessions (holding them is tiring), they require a steady hand for proper focus, and you may experience a limited field of view if you don’t hold the lens close to your eye.

Magnifying Reading Glasses (Microscopes)

Often called “microscopes,” these magnifying reading glasses allow you to read for longer periods while keeping your hands free.

Pros: They provide a wide field of view, keep your hands free for holding materials or turning pages, and are portable.

Cons: You must hold reading materials or objects very close to your face, which can block out light (a major problem for low vision), and it requires you to hold materials very steady.

Distance Optical Devices (Telescopes for Far Viewing)

These devices help you see objects beyond arm’s reach for both quick “spot” viewing and longer duration tasks.

Handheld Telescopes (Monoculars)

A handheld telescope is a monocular (single-eyepiece) device you use with one eye. People typically use them for short-term “spot” viewing, such as reading a street sign, checking a house number, or reading an aisle number in a store.

Pros: They are very helpful for a wide range of distance and near-distance items, are inexpensive and portable, and can be kept on a cord or in a pocket for quick use.

Cons: They offer a limited field of view, and you must hold them steady (slight movements affect clarity). Important: Do not walk while looking through a monocular, as it distorts depth perception and affects balance.

Spectacle-Mounted Telescopes

Spectacle-mounted telescopes permanently attach to the lenses of your eyeglasses.

Pros: They leave both hands free, allow for longer viewing periods (e.g., watching a ball game or movie), and magnify things nicely.

Cons: They provide a smaller field of view than uncorrected vision, can feel heavy on the nose, and carry the highest cost of all low vision aids. Important: Do not walk or move about while wearing them, as they affect balance.

Bioptic Telescopes

Bioptic telescopic glasses are a type of spectacle-mounted telescope positioned in the upper part of your eyeglass lenses. This strategic placement allows you to look through the bottom half for general distance viewing and then glance through the telescopes at the top for a magnified image.

Note on Driving: Some states allow persons with low vision to use bioptic telescopes for driving under strictly specified conditions. You can research local regulations and resources for driving with low vision in your state.

Maximizing the Benefits of Low Vision Aids

You can enhance the effectiveness of your optical devices by combining them with simple, non-optical aids. These helpful strategies significantly improve your reading speed and comfort.

Practice Regularly: Like any new skill, mastering a low vision device requires weeks of regular practice. Be patient with yourself.

Increase Illumination: You will need much more light than before. Use a gooseneck or flex-arm lamp to bring a bright light source close to your reading material.

Use a Reading Stand: A reading stand or clipboard holds your material steady, brings the material closer to your eye (which increases magnification and field of view), and improves your posture to minimize light blocking.

Position the Magnifier Correctly: When using a magnifier, keep the lens closer to your eye to increase the field of view and see more of the line at once.

Use a Typoscope: A typoscope (a black plastic guide with a cutout) helps you track along the line of text and return correctly to the next line without getting lost.

Learning to read with a low vision device means you will have to hold your material much closer than you did before. Remember, this close distance will not hurt your eyes or worsen your vision problem.