Hi Mel,
I think both of the options you are looking are probably in a “better value range” but to make a more meaningful assessment and comparison between them I would need a little more information about both than is listed on their sites. If you call both of them you should be able to fill in the gaps of the information that is missing.
I have had several good conversations with the owners at Ideal mattress and they are knowledgeable about their products and helpful with their customers and I think highly of them.
This mattress is basically a Kingsdown mattress with 3" of natural latex (probably Dunlop but I would make sure and also confirm whether it is 100% natural latex or a blend)
It has a zoned pocket coil which appears to be good quality but I would want to know the number of coils and the gauge (or since it is zoned the range of the gauges). This is not a completely accurate way to compare different pocket coil innersprings but at least it provides some basic information and the innersprings of a mattress are not usually the “weak link” of the mattress.
I also believe this may have other layers as well and I would want to know what these are.
The mattress also has other “features” such as “motion separation technology” and their “solo sleep system” which I would want to know the details to see if these provided any extra value that was important to you.
This has an organic cotton tick which is a good quality material but I would also want to know what is in the quilting
I have also talked with Tonfurniture and think highly of them as well. They work closely with Dreamstar and are knowledgeable and open about their mattresses as well.
This one has a Talalay latex comfort layer but they don’t specify the thickness (it could just be an inch or so) or the blend (either blended or 100% natural).
It also contains several other polyfoam layers and I would want to know the thickness and density of each of them.
This also has an organic cotton tick and wool in the quilting which is great for controlling humidity and temperature.
The innerspring is a 13 gauge 900 coils which is good quality and lower gauge (thicker) than most pocket coils.
Both of these have a foam surround for edge support and I am not a particular fan of this method of making the edge firmer because of the risk of delamination and foam softening. There are better ways to do this (such as steel reinforcements, firmer coils on the edge, or polyfoam re-inforcements in the coils) and using polyfoam is really just a cost cutting measure that reduces the cost of the steel coils that are used. I would certainly want to know the density of the polyfoam that was used in both cases.
Of course your own personal testing on each of these and how they compare in terms of PPP (Pressure relief, Posture and alignment, and Personal preferences) is just as much a part of their value along with the other services, options, and benefits that are included with each mattress purchase which may also be an important part of your “personal value equation” and can’t be “separated out” from the overall value of each one.
So if you can call both of them and have them provide a more detailed “layer by layer” description it would make a more meaningful comparison between the two of them possible.
Phoenix