Review: Aqua Sphere Kaiman Exo Clear Lens Swimming Goggles

Aqua Sphere Kaiman Exo

I was excited to be sent the Kaiman Exo swimming goggles made by Aqua Sphere to test and review on my blog. The Exo is the latest incarnation of Aqua Sphere’s popular Kaiman range and claim features such as curved lenses to improve field of vision, a latex-free seal for comfort, and easily adjustable side buckles for an improved fit.

They are also available with a dark or mirrored lens, and come in standard- and small-fit sizes, as well as clear or dark ladies’ specific fit.

The Unboxing

I already use Aqua Sphere’s Vista goggles, which I received as a birthday gift last year, for open water swimming and have found them to be excellent- comfortable, durable, no problems with leakages- so was champing at the bit to try out the new Exos to see if they performed just as well.

My original plan was to test them both indoors and out, but unfortunately as summer has long left us, any realistic hopes of sea-swimming have been dashed by the cold weather- clearly I’ve been living down South too long! However, the year-round training doesn’t stop and I was keen to give these a run out at one of the Exeter Tri Club training sessions.

The look:

The Kaiman Exo come in a standard rigid clear plastic case to protect them, and this can be used to transport the goggles in your kit bag. The lenses are crystal clear, as you would expect fresh out of the box, and they have a fairly low profile. Unless you swim in a Swedish-style goggle, you’re not going to get much more stream-lined. As much as a pair of goggles can look good, these do.

The feel:

These goggles are nice and light, and the seal feels soft, grippy, and pliable. With some goggles in the past I have had problems with the bridge across the nose being too broad or not adjustable, but these have ample give to fit my fairly small and flat nose. First impression on dry land was that they felt pretty comfortable.

The fit:

A lot of goggles come with a split strap and I’m quite keen on this feature as it helps hold them in place and distributes pressure a bit more evenly. The easily adjustable straps on the Exo make getting a secure fit to suit a very simple task, and it would be no problem to change this on the fly if you wanted to. They have a small buckles to lock the straps firmly in place so they don’t loosen, but can be tightened with one hand. As I said above the fit across the bridge of my nose was good.

The performance:

One of the first things I do with any goggles before I consider buying them is to check if they’ll stay on my face when dry and without the strap round my head. This tells me straight away if I’ll get a good seal easily enough, but also if it feels like I have to press them so hard against my face that my eyeballs are going to get sucked out. You’ll be pleased to read that I got a nice strong seal straight away whilst keeping both of my peepers in situ!

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  Easily adjustable straps ensure a quick and comfortable fit

  Visibility

My usual swim venue with Exeter Triathlon Club is quite dimly lit, so I was surprised to find things actually seemed brighter with these on, especially underwater. I don’t know how the lenses are made (obviously) but I wonder if the effect is due to materials similar to those found in ski goggles and cycling glasses that seem to enhance light in some way. It was also a huge change for me as last winter I wore smoked goggles indoors- I won’t be going back to that for sure.

• Fogging

With the Kaiman Exo clear goggles I was pleased to find no issues with fogging during the entire hour’s swim set, and vision remained clear throughout.

• The Seal

Although the seal felt good on dry land, that isn’t much help if they don’t keep water out when you’re underwater! I had no problems with any leakage at all, including on tumble turns, so didn’t need to stop to let water out at any time. They remained comfortable for the whole swim.

Verdict:

I think for possibly the first time ever I completed a swim without once removing my goggles for one reason or another (races notwithstanding of course!) I did make a conscious decision to see how much I’d need to adjust/remove but, given the comfort, strong seal, and perfect visibility, this wasn’t a problem and I didn’t really consider it beyond the first fifteen minutes or so.

Good seal and split strap 

I was very pleased with the performance and look forward to seeing how they stand the test of time. If anything changes over time then I will of course update this review.

These goggles got 4.4/5 on Wiggle from customer reviews, and 9.1/10 on Trust Pilot, so it seems as though most other user had a similar experience to mine.

The pros:

I found these to be light, comfortable goggles that offer a good seal and excellent visibility. They are easily adjustable and available in different sizes for women, men, and children so getting the right fit should be easy enough for most people.

The cons:

I can’t say I found any particular downside to these on initial testing. Of course I can’t comment on their durability, but there is nothing to indicate they won’t last- especially if my experience of the Aqua Sphere Vistas is anything to go by. At RRP £18.99 they fall roughly in the mid-range of cost for goggles, though they can be bought cheaper from sites such as Wiggle.

Buy them if:

You want a high performance, comfortable goggle with a good seal and excellent visibility, but at a reasonable price.

Don’t buy them if:

You need every ounce of hydrodynamic advantage available and want the lowest profile possible- only really found in Swedish goggles- or you really need to watch every single penny.