Hi kas5525,
The “best” way to avoid information overwhelm is to go through all the steps in the tutorial post one by one. It has all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that you will need to make the best possible choices and know how and why to avoid the worst ones … all in one place.
The tutorial also includes more information about why I would also avoid using mattress reviews (either positive or negative) as a guideline for the type of mattress that would be best for you (see post #13 here) because a mattress that is “perfect” for someone else or even a large group of people may still use low quality and less durable materials or be completely unsuitable for you to sleep on.
There is more about Amerisleep and their sister companies and their so called “expert sites” that pose as being independent in post #2 here and the posts it links to. A forum search on Amerisleep (you can just click the link) will bring up more about them as well. As you can see, I believe there are certainly better options available.
One of the links in the tutorial post is the guidelines here and as you can see I would avoid the major brands. There is also more about the “value” or a mattress purchase in post #13 here. Outside of how well a mattress matches your specific needs and preferences in terms of PPP, the most important part of a mattress purchase is making sure you know the quality of the materials inside any mattress you are considering so you can identify any weak links and make more meaningful comparisons to other mattresses. The information you need to know about the materials in a mattress are in this article and once you have this then you can compare it to the guidelines here or list the layers and components on the forum and I’d be happy to share my thoughts about the quality of the materials.
Their are thousands of possible combinations of innersprings and comfort layers in a hybrid mattress and there isn’t a “standard” combination that a mattress “should have”. I would make sure you do some careful and objective testing using the testing guidelines in the tutorial post so your body can tell you whether a mattress is a good “match” for you … not the type or specs of the layers. Regardless of the type of materials in a mattress or it’s design … if it’s a good match for you then all you need to do is check to make sure that it uses good quality and durable materials and components and that there are no weak links in the mattress. I wouldn’t use specs to decide on the suitability or a mattress and how a mattress feels when you test it won’t tell you anything about its durability. Suitability and durability are both important parts of a mattress purchase but one can’t tell you anything about the other.
Once you reach step 3 in the tutorial then the better options and possibilities I’m aware of in the Indianapolis area are listed in post #2 here.
If you are open to an online purchase then the tutorial post also includes several links to the better online options I’m aware of as well.
Phoenix