If you're looking for a functional sport sunglass that doesn't make you look like a Cylon out of Battlestar Galactica, the Giro Semi needs to be on your short list. The Semi is at home on the bike as it is at a tennis match as it is walking down the street. The styling is strong, but subtle, saying that the wearer is at home everywhere.

The Semi frame is designed to fit a human head that is wearing a helmet. This means that the temples hit neither the straps nor the secondary retention system. That there is no binding means the glasses are easier to get on, get off, and have them stay in place. With rubber temple tips and nosepiece, these glasses will stay put. With Wind Tunnel Technology vents, you won't have a need to remove them, even on the muggiest of climbs. But just because it's built to be worn with a helmet doesn't mean you won't be happy with it in non-riding circumstances -- they work in a social setting just as stylishly.

The Semi lens curves a good bit more than the regular single-lens sportglass. Giro calls it True Sight, which is just a trademarked way of saying that the range of clear, accurate, non-distorted vision is a total of 60 degrees, 30 each from center, which is much more than the average sport sunglass can say for itself.

Every Giro Lens comes with a number after the shade. This is the Visible Light Transmission (VLT) index. The lower the number, the darker the lens. Giro lenses range from 82 for clear to 12 for their polarized lens. The polarized lens has a "z" after the VLT indicating that it is Zeiss Certified. Carl Zeiss Vision specializes in incredibly distortion-free lenses. Giro hammered out an exclusive arrangement Zeiss and the lenses are not only designed but manufactured to the highest standards.

All Giro sunglasses come with a Dura Clean coating. This is a two-component coat on top of the lens which helps repel water, oil, and fingerprints on one level, and helps prevent lens scratching on another.

The Giro Semi is a two-lens sunglass. The frame is made of Grilamid. The Lens is 8-Base True Sight polycarbonate. The Frame/Lens Color Combinations available are: Gloss White/Brown Bronze (26), Matte Black/Rose Silver (23), and Matte Black/Clear Silver (82). The Semi lenses are not interchangeable. The glasses ship in a box that contains a soft cloth carrying case that is also ideal for lens cleaning.