I love the sealy optimum radiance and dreams and would already have ordered one if not for stumbling on to some bad feedback here. I would love to try out an independents mattress similar but I cant find any close to me. The other thing is that I am used to going with the name brand on major purchases (farm/construction equip. etc.) simply for the customer support and the prompt service if something is wrong. Any help is greatly appreciated as harvest is coming to a close and my back is in need of some serious R&R! My zip is 47993. Thanks
Hi rcstnnr,
Hopefully you have read the tutorial post here which has all the basic information, steps, and guidelines you will need to make more informed choices and make more meaningful comparisons between mattresses.
There is nothing inherently “wrong” with the Sealy Optimum Radiance and you can see the specifics of the layering in post #48 here.
As you can see it uses 4" of 4 lb memory foam (approximately) over a polyfoam support core that for the most part is 2.2 lb polyfoam.
4 lb memory foam is in the medium range of density/quality and the support core in this model is mostly a high quality polyfoam.
Overall this mattress would certainly be suitable for some people in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) as long as they weren’t in a heavier weight range where I would tend to minimize the use of 4 lb memory foam for durability reasons because it will soften and break down faster than higher density memory foam. The loss of comfort and support that comes from foam softening and leads to the need to replace the mattress isn’t covered by a warranty.
The bigger issue with many of the mainstream mattresses (other than their lack of transparency) is that they are either lower quality or significantly more costly than other similar mattresses that use similar quality materials and designs. In other words in this case it isn’t a matter of quality as much as value.
As an example … if you look at the Novosbed Harmony mattress here you will see that it is very similar in terms of design, quality of materials, and overall “feel” to the Optimum Inspiration (which is the next model up from the Radiance). The biggest difference is that it is about 50% - 60% of the cost of the Radiance (depending on the price you pay for the Inspiration).
This type of variance would be similar throughout the Optimum lineup when you compare them to other similar mattresses made by other mostly smaller manufacturers that for most people would be better value. When you know the quality of the materials in a mattress then you are in a good position to make more meaningful comparisons.
Of course for someone where price wasn’t a major consideration or who wasn’t as price conscious … both mattresses would have a similar feel, quality, and useful lifetime so the difference wouldn’t be in how well you sleep on the mattress or in how long it lasts but more in the difference in what you paid for a very similar mattress.
If you are in a lower to average weight range where 4" of 4 lb memory foam would be suitable in terms of durability and the Sealy Optimum is the only mattress that you believe would be suitable for your specific needs and preferences then in terms of quality and PPP it wouldn’t make a “poor” purchase only a more costly one with lower “value”. If on the other hand you have the ability, time, or desire to find a mattress that is just as suitable for you in terms of PPP and either more durable (uses higher quality materials) or has a significantly lower cost for a similar mattress or has other features or benefits included in the purchase that may be important to you then for most people it wouldn’t be the best choice for their personal value equation when there are so many others that are similar and would probably be better “value”.
Outside of some of the online choices that are linked in the tutorial post (which if nothing else are always useful for “value” comparisons) … some of the better options or possibilities I’m aware of that are in reasonable driving distance are included in the Indianapolis list here and in the Peoria list here. The tutorial post also includes guidelines about how to eliminate some of the worse quality/value options and identify the better retailers and/or manufacturers in your area that may have better quality/value available and may be closer to you although a quick scan didn’t show any great possibilities in your immediate area.
Phoenix