Glasses enable customization through magnetic arms

Japanese design group Nendo has now created its magne-hinge spectacles, which use magnetic hinges to enable wearers to easily swap out the arms as they please.

Glasses are a fashion accessory as much as they are medical necessity, yet most short or long-sighted people put up with wearing the same pair each day. While we’ve previously seen Frameri develop prescription lenses that can be popped out of their frames and placed into new designs, Japanese design group Nendo has now created its magne-hinge spectacles, which use magnetic hinges to enable wearers to easily swap out the arms as they please.

The studio, which is behind the ofon flatpack furniture that requires a coin as its only assembly tool previously featured on Springwise, has eschewed the usual screws that fix the arms into place, instead making them magnetic so they simply snap onto the frame. The arms are still able to turn on their hinges, but can be easily be removed if the wearer feels like changing the color or design. As well as enabling owners to alter the style without purchasing an entirely new pair of glasses, but the screwless joint is less likely to break or need realigning.

magne-hinge glasses currently offer four different styles of arms and are exclusively available to buy at Seibu department stores in Japan. Are there other ways that commonly worn items can be made customizable with modular parts?