If you want to buy an air mattress, buy this one.
Written: Jul 09 '02 (Updated Jul 10 '02)
|
Product Rating:
|
|
| Comfort: |
 |
|
| Ease of Use: |
 |
|
| Durability: |
|
|
| Style: |
|
|
|
Pros: firmness adjustment, movement isolation, very comfortable and a good quality
Cons: I would like a smaller size control unit and thicker material on the bottom
The Bottom Line: If you are looking for a comfortable mattress, this is your best choice. To find out if the airbed is suitable for you, check the end of my review.
|
|
|
| tanzi's Full Review: Comfortaire Cerulean Mattress |
About five months ago, our mattress was worn out. Because my wife was tired of turning the mattress once a month, we started looking for something other than the regular innerspring type of mattress. After checked out different alternatives, we thought the air mattress might be the our choice.
The trigger of thinking to get an air mattress was the TV commercial from the SelectComfort. We ordered and watched their videotape, and also went to their local demo room to see the real thing. Everything looked good but two: First, the company only uses the high density foam for the rails around the edge of the mattress on its top line model. This model is using the same air chambers used in the lower end models with just more layers of foam pads added on top. It didn't make much sense to me because with so many layers of the foam, on top the advantages of "sleep on air", which was advertised by the company, will disappear (it becomes "sleep on foam" instead). The soft foam edges were used on the model that we were interested in made the bed only look nice when the chambers were fully inflated (It was also sagging too much when I sit on the edge). The second thing that we didn't like was that their two air chambers did not meet in the center, and a plastic form was added as a divider. I could feel it when I moved from one side to another even the firmness on two sides was adjusted the same.
The second choice was the one we saw in the local Sit'n Sleep store (don't remember the manufacture). The best of its design was that two air pumps were provided on their double chamber mattress model, so that each person can adjust the firmness on his or her side individually. Their air chambers were 8" thick, which is two inches thicker than SelectComfort products. The foam used to construct the borders was high density so that the bed looked nice even the air chambers were not fully inflated. In addition, their two air chambers met in the center without a foam divider. Everything looked better than what SelectComfort provided except two: First, the air chambers were made by vinyl, which I believe not to be as reliable as rubber material. Secondly, two air pumps were attached directly to the air chambers at the head side (which the manufacture claimed to be a feature). The pumps were very noisy, especially were running by your head.
Later, I found the Comfortaire products on web. The overall design looked much better than the above two without those drawbacks. First, their middle trim model, Cerulean, which they call it "the best seller", provided 8" thick air chamber and a less noisy pump, which met our minimum requirement. There was no foam divider between two air chambers. High density foam was used for edges so the bed could look nice even the air chambers were not fully inflated. (I was sure that we wouldn't like to sleep on a fully inflated mattress. I wanted my bed to look nice during the day but didn't want to fully inflate it every morning.)
After a couple of weeks of research and comparison, I believed that the Comfortaire's Cerulean model might be our best choice. Because there was no local store that carried this mattress (a minus side from Comfortaire), I couldn't go to see and try the real thing. I was hesitant about spending more than a thousand bucks to buy something I never saw. With my hesitation, I logged onto Internet to read consumer reviews in order to increase my confidence.
I wanted to talk to someone (salesperson) and ask some questions, but it was around 9 o'clock PM on Sunday. I couldn't expect anyone was available. I started to write down the phone numbers of those web stores and plan to call on the next day.
When I stopped on Nationwidemattress web site, I found that someone there was still available (until 1:00 AM CST). What a surpprise! So I called. Richard Alfano answered the phone. He was very friendly and patient, although it was quite late for him (I'm in California and I'm one hour ahead of him). We chatted for about half an hour. He was knowledgeable about all Comfortaire products and answered all my questions. Because of the free shipping and 90 days return policy, I decided to give it a try. When we talked about the purchase, he told me that I just missed their Valentine's Day sale, but he was willing to give me the sales price, which could save me $200.
The rest of the story was pretty much the same as other reviewers: I placed the order. Then the mattress came in two big boxes about a week later. As an engineer, to put the pieces together was a piece of cake ?
It has been four months passed by, and I have absolutely no problem at all with this mattress. Both my wife and me love it. I didn't have chances to try all types of mattresses in the world, so I can't say this is the best. I think at least I can say that this is the most comfortable mattress I've ever slept on. A few weeks later, with my recommendation, one of my friends bought the same mattress from the Nationwidemattress. You can find his review on this web site as well (see zhezhang's review).
I found a few people who claimed that they felt uncomfortable in the first night so they thought they made a bad decision. Based on my experience, I guess that they might not set the air pressure correctly. Unlike the innerspring or foam types of mattresses, the air mattress tends to distribute the pressure evenly over your body contact area. (Note, add too much foam on top will reduce this nature.) In order to get a good body support, the mattress has to be adjusted at the right pressure level. If you feel sagging into the bed, the air pressure is too low; you will probably develop a back pain in the morning. If you add too much air, you will have a gap (with no support) between the mattress and some area of your body curve; this will create high pressure to your contact points. You won't feel comfortable in either case. You have to try a few nights to find out what your comfortable zone is. The SelectComfort's "sleep number" will not help you a bit on this - you have to rely on your feeling. In addition, never judge the mattress firmness by sitting on it. Unlike the innerspring type of mattress (which does not have the pressure distribution nature), you will feel much softer than the mattress actually is when you sit on it.
Finally, it is important to know that the advantage of the air mattress is that it distributes the pressure evenly in your body contact area. If you are the one who likes to have more support at a particular part of your body, the air mattress may not be your choice.
Recommended:
Yes
Mattress Size: California King
Amount Paid (US$): 1099
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
tanzi
|
|
Reviews written: 1
Trusted by: 0 members
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.