Gather ’round, boys and girls! It’s time for show and tell: contact lens and eye care edition.

I’ve been wearing soft contact lenses for almost two(!) decades now, and I can’t believe I only just discovered the following contact lens care products. Yeah, yeah…a good portion of my readers are Asian and most likely have known about these for years. But I love them so much that I felt the need to write rave about them for those who might not be in the know.

First up is the iPool Contact Lens Auto Cleaner:

The iPool uses a combination of vibrations and silver nano-particle technology to thoroughly clean your contact lenses. It doesn’t matter if you wear hard or soft lenses, regular or disposables — just drop your lenses inside the cute animal case, fill it with contact lens solution, place it onto the AAA battery-powered base, press the button and wait for at least 3 minutes.

Since the lens case is detachable from the base, you can easily carry your clean lenses wherever you need to go, and even use other MioFriends Nanosilver Antibaterial cases with the iPool base.

I had doubts about the iPool, but I decided to pick one up when EyeCandy’s was having a big sale earlier this year and I LOVE it! I could really tell the difference between a pair of lenses that have been cleaned by hand, and a pair that has been cleaned using the iPool. In fact, I always use the iPool now!

You can find the iPool on eBay and various online stores that carry Asian products, especially those that carry circle lenses. Pricse seem to hover around $20 USD and it’s TOTES WORTH IT in my opinion. 😀

iPool recently released a Disney version of their cleaner. It’s a bit more expensive than the original, but I think any Disney fan would believe the extra ~$2 to be worth it.

(I asked EyeCandy’s if there is a functional difference between the regular iPool and the Disney version. They tell me that it’s purely cosmetic. And just in case you’re wondering, EyeCandy’s has no idea I’m writing this post, nor am I getting compensated for promoting them. 🙂 )

Next up are some eye drops. As is the case with most contact lens wearers, my eyes usually start to feel dry during my mid-afternoon slump. (Does the body just want to shut down at this time?) Rewetting drops — or, as a friend likes to call it, “contact juice” — will usually solve the problem and I had no issues with them…

Until I learned about Japanese eye drops. More specifically, the Rohto line of eye drops.

I had heard about Lycée eye drops from various sources, but never knew that they’re made by Rohto until recently. Rohto Lycée drops are immensely popular among the female population in Asia, and when you look at the packaging below, it’s easy to see why.

I tried a friend’s Lycée contact lens rewetting drops, and while I loved the cooling and soothing effect it had on my eyes (Rohto is known for this!), I didn’t love the rose smell.

However, I’m particularly sensitive about smells in the products I use, and I know that I’m in the minority for not liking the Lycée’s subtle scent. The Lycée is also supposed to have one of the weakest cooling effects in the Rohto line, so it’s a great “starter” for those who may be hesitant.

Another big plus is that since the Lycée is so popular, you can get it through American online stores like Amazon ($15.50 for the regular version, and $17.90 for the contact lens type). However, it’s much cheaper if you can stop by a Japanese store in person, or via eBay.

For myself, I wanted to go for something stronger. I was a bit torn on what type to get, so I decided to check out the discount site Sasa, which happens to be a huge chain pharmacy in Asia. My suspicions were correct: I was able to buy two for less than the price of one from other sites. (The downside was slow shipping.)

The Rohto C3 Cool+ (left) initially feels like liquid ice in your eyes, while the New V Rohto Plus (right) feels minty and refreshing. Both clear my eyes of any redness within just minutes, and the extra moisture lasts waaayyyyyyy longer than any western brand of rewetting drops I’ve tried over the years.

Needless to say, I love them. 

When I run out of these, I want to try the Rohto Cool 40a, which contains vitamins and amino acids to help restore your eyes’ health, and the Rohto Eye Moisturizer drops, which are supposed to help heal tired eyes overnight.

The only downside to these, and other Rohto contact lens rewetting drops, is that they’re a bit harder to find here in the states than regular Rohto eye drops. However, I know that they’re everywhere in Asia, at much cheaper prices too, so I plan to ask my in-laws to bring a few bottles with them when they return to the U.S. in September.

What about you guys? Do you have any tips and/or products you love and recommend for contact lens wearers who spend too much time staring into computer and phone screens?