Its Still an Air Mattress
Written: Mar 05 '04 (Updated Oct 16 '06)
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Pros: Light weight. No flipping. Adjustable.
Cons: Can be $230 if you dont like it. Air Mattress. Expensive. Foamwall corners and middle.
The Bottom Line: Try other beds, dont just take their word that all spring beds are less comfortable. Some like it and some dont.
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| tysonson's Full Review: Select Comfort Mattress Sleep Number 5000 |
My wife and I recently decided to get a larger and more comfortable bed. I am 6'5" and need length of a CalKing and she is 5'2" and likes to spread out over as much of the mattress as possible (forcing me to the very edge of the mattress). My old queen just was not cutting it. Stiff back and no room.
We wanted to try a new bed. One that both of us would like. I had seen commercials for the Select Comfort and my wife and I decided to go to a store and try one out. When we went to the store the staff was very friendly and they had all models to try out. My wife tried them out first and seemed to like them. I tried them and could not tell if it was comfortable or not, it just felt like an air mattress to me. We obviously liked the 7000 series the most with its much thicker pillowtop but decided to go with the Cal King 5000 series because it was $1000 cheaper than the Cal King 7000.
The 5000 has 2 separate air mattresses inside so both can adjust to their own preference, as they advertise. It has an electric air pump that, hums as it pumps up the mattress and quietly releases air as it lowers air pressure, a pillow top, a dual remote (wired or wireless) with lighted LCD display, and a foundation with legs or a frame for extra. It has a 20-year warranty so I felt comfortable that if the pump died or air mattresses failed they would be replaced at no cost. The bed is light and breaks down in to its basic components for transport. The 2 air mattresses inside come out and deflate and the fabric shell folds up after you take out the 4" foam boarder walls. The foundation is also light and made of a sturdy plastic/polymer type material that can support my 240lbs standing on it.
When the bed was delivered, about two weeks after purchase, the crew set it up, explained features, and gave a demonstration. When I laid down on it I had my first impressions from the store. Glorified Air Mattress. Their so-called patented "I-beam baffled design air chambers" don’t do much of anything to keep it from feeling like any other air mattress.
When I lie down on my back my legs and feet are a little higher than the rest of my body. This is because my upper torso is a bit heavier than my legs and lower torso so the displaced air forces my legs up a little and increases pressure in my lower back. You can of course increase the air pressure to reduce or eliminate this but then the mattress is too firm for my liking. You also have to center yourself over your air mattress to get the full affect. I am used to sleeping near the edge of the bed and this is not comfortable on this mattress. There are the 4" foam walls there at the edge of the air mattress (one thinner through the middle). I found that if I was about a foot from the edge of the mattress it canted my body toward the edge. I have to move farther in on the mattress to get an even level, witch means my wife will be draped over me and I do not sleep as well with her arm on my throat and knee in my groin. Moving on this bed moves everything else on it. If I move to quickly the temporarily displaced air from my shifting weight forces my other parts of my body up and down until I settle again, typical of air mattress.
Neither my wife nor I are comfortable with the Select Comfort. We went out and tried the so called outdated or obsolete spring mattresses (Sterns & Foster and Seally) and they left us feeling very comfortable right when we laid down on them, no question about it. They are also cheaper. We bought a Sterns & Foster double sided. It has a 15 year warranty and does require you to rotate it every so often but it is 5x more comfortable to me and worth it. It is regularly a little less than the Select Comfort 5000 but it was on special so I paid over $400 less. It is very comfortable on your side as well. Select Comforts comparison against a traditional spring mattress does not represent a good understanding. You don’t know what kind of mattress they test against and there is a very big difference between top and bottom level spring mattresses. Select Comfort mattresses cost the same if not more than top quality spring mattresses.
The worst part of the 30 Day trial. They charge $80 to deliver and set up and then if you don’t like it they charge $150 to come pick it up. It is not a free 30 day trial its a $80 if you like it trial and a $230 trial if you don’t. Think it through and consider this if you are concerned about money. In fairness they did offer to let me haul all the boxes home for free, but I am not sure if tehy would have let me take it back to them for free.
Some people seem to like the Select Comfort Mattresses an awful lot. My wife and I do not like it at all. I would recommend visiting the Select Comfort store on several different days and when your are tired and not tired. It may feel ok one day but not on others. Spend time lying on it not just a couple of minutes.
I forgot to mention that they give you the option to pick it up for free so there would be no charge if you wanted to lug all the boxes home. However, when I was sending it back they would not let me drop it off anywhere. I had to pay them to come pick it up.
Recommended:
No
Mattress Size: California King
Mattress Firmness: Somewhat soft
Amount Paid (US$): 2000
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Epinions.com ID:
tysonson
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Location: Denver, CO
Reviews written: 24
Trusted by: 3 members
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