Hi Wavycat,
Material Quality:
All 3 of these use good quality materials with no obvious weak links (low quality materials that are more than an inch or so in the upper layers).
Suitability in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences):
This would be one of the most important parts of a decision and you didn’t mention any specific comments about how well each mattress relieved pressure and most importantly kept you in alignment. You did mention the “comfort” level but comfort alone won’t tell you much about how well a mattress will perform when you actually sleep on it. The testing guidelines in post #1 here will help you test the mattress more carefully and objectively … especially for how well it keeps you in alignment.
Value Blended Talalay (which is what the PLB and the OMF mattresses use) and 100% natural Dunlop (which is what the RoomandBoard uses) are roughly comparable in terms of material value. The PLB uses a stretch knit cover which has no quilting, the OMF uses a thin polyfoam quilting, and the Room and Board uses wool in the quilting so this would be the most costly cover. The PLB has 12" of latex and the other two have 9" of latex. The OMF uses 1.5" of convoluted latex which is slightly less costly than a solid latex layer (you can make two 1.5" convoluted layers out of a single solid layer that is about 2" or so). The Room and Board and OMF are also two sided which is a value “bonus” (you can flip the mattress and this can increase durability). You didn’t mention specific prices and only the OMF and the Room & Board have them on their site so this will give you some means to compare material value but again this is less important than PPP because if a mattress doesn’t match your needs and preferences it would have little value to you no matter what its material value.
Design:
You are both on the heavier side (200 lbs +) which means that its a good idea to pay attention to the thickness and the firmness of the comfort layers. Even with latex … when you have thicker and softer comfort layers or softer support layers there is a risk of alignment issues and back discomfort and pain (the type of discomfort you feel when you wake up in the morning) and softer layers of any material are also less durable under heavier weights. This means that testing for alignment in all your sleeping positions becomes even more important. The deeper parts of a mattress need to be able to “stop” your pelvis or hips from sinking in too far and at the same time the upper layers need to be soft and thick enough to relieve pressure, allow the shoulders to sink in enough, and to fill in the recessed gaps in your sleeping profile (the recessed lumbar curve on your back and the waist on your side). The goal though is “just enough” and no more when it comes to “comfort”. If you choose softer or thicker layers in the upper part of your mattress than you realy need then the risk with alignment increases. At your weights anything 24 ILD or less would generally be considered soft and for most people of your weights even 28 ILD would be in the “soft” range even though it would feel firmer for someone who was lighter.
This means that I would consider the Beautiful to be a somewhat risky construction in terms of the risk of alignment issues for your body type and sleeping style (back and stomach sleeping generally needs thinner soft layers) because it has 6" of “soft” latex in the top layers.
The OMF would be a little less risky. Although it has a fairly soft support layer (32 ILD) the top part of this layer would be part of your comfort layer and then it would get firmer after that. I would also test it on a firm foundation so that you can eliminate the effect of the box spring under the mattress to see which way works best for you. Testing it on an adjustable bed that was flat will be the same as using a firm non flexing foundation.
As far as I know … the Room and Board uses Dunlop and also has a thinner comfort layer. Dunlop gets firmer faster than Talalay as you sink into it more so it tends to be more “supportive” as a support layer compared to the same ILD as Talalay for those who who would benefit from firmer support.
As you can see … the missing ingredient is the “value” of a mattress that fits all your needs and preferences based on careful and objective testing. This is one of the biggest parts of the value of a mattress purchase and only your own testing can determine this. The other components of “value” that are part of your personal value equation are also important … especially making sure you know your recourse if you do choose a mattress that is too soft once you actually sleep on it over the course of the first few weeks.
You can always make a mattress that is too firm softer by adding a topper. You can’t make a mattress that is too soft (either in the support layers or in the thickness and firmness of the comfort layers) firmer without removing layers and replacing them which isn’t possible with a finished mattress unless you have the ability zip open the cover and exchange a layer.
Hopefully this will give you some food for thought … and especially to make sure that you test a mattress for more than “comfort” alone which doesn’t necessarily translate into healthy sleeping or good PPP once the mattress is out of the showroom and into the bedroom.
Phoenix