Oakley Radar EV Path review: the legend that still wins on grip
- Unit tested
- OO9208-4538
- As configured
- Black frame with red icon, Prizm Road lens.
- Lens curvature
- Dual axis
- Temples
- Wraparound, very thick, fully rubberised
This reviews the Oakley Radar EV Path as a model. The unit above is the exact one tested; other colourways differ in paint and fitted lens, not in anything scored here. Lens tints and coatings are deliberately not part of this review, they are measured and scored separately in the lens research section.
Reviewed by Ken. Full disclosure: I run BananaOptics and I make prescription inserts for most of the frames in this series. Read the prescription section knowing that. Every frame is scored by me, on my face, against published anchors: each criterion is calibrated by the named best and worst frame in the collection, whole points 1 to 10. The full methodology.
Verdict
An absolute legend, one of Oakley's best sellers, and it earns it. The temples are thick, fully rubberised and wraparound, and these sunglasses are going nowhere: sprinting, sweating, looking down into a rock garden, nothing moves them. It is also one of the most comfortable frames I own, which is not a given for a wraparound, as the Sphaera Slash proves. The costs are the standard dual axis ones: less airflow than a Sutro, and tight space behind the lens for a prescription. If your frame absolutely must stay on your head, this is my answer. It is also the best tactical option out there, above any of the tactical M Frame variants.
Scores
| Criterion | Score | Anchors, best and worst in the collection |
|---|---|---|
| Protection | 9 | 10 Velans, 5 Sutro S and Lite S |
| Grip | 10 | 10 Radar EV, 2 Sutro |
| Ventilation | 4 | 9 Sutro Lite, 4 Sphaera, Radar EV and Jawbreaker |
| Comfort | 10 | 10 Radar EV, 3 Sphaera |
| Style | 9 | 10 Sweep, 5 Velans |
| Quality | 9 | 10 Jawbreaker, 5 Sutro and Sphaera |
| RX | 5 | 10 100% S3, 4 Vanguard |
| Ecosystem | 9 | 10 Sutro, 2 Vanguard |
Ride 33/40 · Life 32/40 · Banana Sunglasses Score 65/80
Nothing on the board scores higher. See all 11 frames ranked
The frame
The Radar EV Path is a dual axis shield: the lens curves around your face and down it. It sits close, seals well, and the EV in the name bought you extra height in the upper field of view. This is the frame the modern wraparound category gets measured against, including by Oakley themselves.
Size against the Oakley Sphaera Slash
The Sphaera Slash is the modern frame aiming at this one's job, so it is preloaded here. The temple comparison alone explains half of both reviews.
Select view
Any two frames in the collection overlay the same way in the full frame size comparison tool.
Protection
Amazing. Close fitting, curved in both directions, nothing meaningful gets past it. Between this and a Sutro on a cold descent, the difference is immediate.
Grip
The best of anything I own, and it is not close. Very thick temples, fully rubberised, wrapped around the back of the head. The contrast with a straight temple frame like the Sutro, which walks down my nose on every rough descent, is the single widest gap on any criterion across this whole series.
Ventilation
Reduced. It sits close to the face, so less air moves and the fogging risk on a stopped climb is real. That is the price of the seal, and the same trade every close fitting frame in this series makes.
Comfort
One of the most comfortable frames here, full stop, and the reason is executional: the rear temple sections are thick, round and fully rubberised, so the wrap spreads its pressure across a wide contact area instead of digging in. The comparison that proves it is the Sphaera Slash. Same wraparound concept, but its rear temples are thinner, flatter and more plasticky, and after a while you feel them pressing. Same idea, two executions, and your head can tell them apart in an hour.
Style
A unique dual axis shape and a design that has been on winners' podiums for a decade. It is a legend and looks like one. One of my favourites in the whole Oakley collection.
Quality
Oakley baseline construction, with the temple execution a visible step above the Sphaera's. Nothing exotic, everything where it should be.
Prescription
Tight, and I want to be precise, because this is my field. A dual axis lens leaves little space between lens and eyes. A prescription insert is workable, but the maker has to deliberately design clearance between face and frame, it does not come free the way it does on a Sutro. I build that clearance into my Radar EV insert. Ask whoever makes yours whether they do.
Ecosystem
Great. The catalogue is deep after a decade in production, availability is good, and while the lenses are not the cheapest, you will always find the tint you want. The Sutro still wins on price, nothing else does.
Who should buy it
Mountain bikers, runners, and anyone whose first requirement is that the glasses stay put. Also my pick over any tactical M Frame variant for shooting sports and duty use. Riders who prioritise airflow or have a strong prescription and want the easiest insert fit should look at the Sutro family instead.