I’m shopping for a new mattress and live in Philadelphia, PA. I searched the forum and came across two “local” mattress makers, which I have visited. One is Magic Sleeper in Pottstown, the other is Vero in West Chester or Broomall. Both make their own mattresses in house. After reading through all of the info on this site, I am interested in an innerspring mattress with about 3" of Talalay latex as the comfort layer due to durability and coolness (among other factors).
At Magic Sleeper, for $1149 (+$50 Delivery), I can get the following:
-Cotton, Wool, and Polyester quilting and ticking
-3" Blended Talalay Latex Foam comfort layer
-13.75 Gauge Verticoil Offset Innerspring
-The comfort layer can easily be removed and replaced via a zipper at the foot of the mattress.
At Verlo, for $1750 (+ $50 Delivery), I can get basically the same thing.
The Magic Sleeper mattress seems in line with the costs listed on this site, but closer to the high end. I’m wondering if I can get anything comparable in the $800-$1000 range, or if there are any other places I should visit.
Can you tell me the sizes of the mattresses you are looking at and are they mattress only or a set. It would also help to know any differences in construction such as different innersprings between the two or other components that may be less obvious.
The first and most important part of “value” is which one best fits your needs and preferences regardless of cost. Any noticeable differences that you you experienced with “objective” testing between them in terms of PPP (Pressure relief, Posture and alignment, and Personal preferences) would add significantly to the value of the one that was closer to “fitting” you.
That aside … and subject to the sizes and any other factors or components that are included in the price … it seems to me that the Magic sleeper is in the lower end of the “range” rather than the higher end. Which mattress were you comparing it to?
Compared to other mainstream manufacturers I would even consider the Verlo to be better value (again depending on the specific components that may make a difference in performance and value) compared to more mainstream mattresses that use similar components or even lesser components although it is not in the same value range as the one at Magic Sleeper.
I would also suggest a call to Dan at Bay Bed & Mattress which specializes in custom mattresses with pocket coils and latex comfort layers which will also give you a reference point for value although it wouldn’t be an apples to apples comparison since he uses pocket coils which are a more costly component.
Mattress only, queen size. I think the Verlo used Leggett and Platt 504 innerspring. I was using the budget section of this site as a rough cost starting point, thinking I might make the $800-$1200 range.
To make the rest of this post clear for others … the section you are referring to is this …
The first thing I should do is to thank you for bringing this up because there is a mistake (the strikethrough) which didn’t make sense that I didn’t notice when I wrote it and which is now corrected.
I hesitated when I wrote this because it is based only on materials which is only part of “value” and doesn’t take into account many of the possible variables or combinations, mattress designs (such as the additional value of a two sided mattress) or even the more subjective parts of “value” or the parts of value that have to do with the knowledge, service, or policies of the outlet you are buying from which can all be equally important. It can also easily become dated as prices change or new materials become available. It is also too general (by necessity) to be used to narrow a mattress down to a specific price or “part of the range”. A high quality polyfoam core for example could range from 1.8 to 2.4 lbs and if it is in the higher part of the range then another component may be lower quality and the mattress would still be in the range.
It is an indicator in other words of “best value” on a national basis and if you have a mattress that “fits” the criteria that is anywhere in the range then the odds are good that it would be what I consider to be good value anywhere in the country. On a local basis however … value can vary widely and while it is still possible to have this type of value anywhere with an online purchase … it is not always available locally and in these cases, for those who only wish to buy something that they can test first, the ranges may be higher. For those who are shopping major brands or mass market outlets … then what they are looking at will rarely fit inside these ranges at all if they can even find out enough information about the materials to know in the first place.
So to put this in context … the description of the Verlo would need to be more specific to know exactly where it fell in the range but even with the partial description you listed it is likely “better than average” value compared to what most people end up buying from major brands or mass market outlets and in some areas may even be in the “best local value” range but probably not in the “best value” range compared to mattresses that are available across the country.
The Magic Sleeper is in the range of the 800 - 1200 criteria (good innerspring, latex comfort layer, wool in the quilting which is often the next step up etc) which means that it would be good value anywhere. If you add to this the knowledge and service of an outlet that helps you “fit” the mattress to your needs and preferences and helps to educate you so that you can make more meaningful comparisons and has the type of service that usually goes with better outlets … then you have a winning “value” combination.
So hopefully this puts an article that by necessity can only cover a small part of what constitutes value in a mattress purchase into a more realistic context.
Thanks again for bringing it up so I could correct the mistake of implying that a latex core with latex comfort layers should be available in this range.
The rate list is nice. Is there any discounts offer and what about warranty? I never used Innerspring mattresses and but heard very good reviews about them.
Neither of these are official members of the site so any discounts available would be based on any “negotiation” you do. Some are open to this but many of the better outlets are already working on a smaller profit margin and list their actual selling prices rather than raising prices so that they can be “negotiated” down again.
Innersprings are just a support component and the materials and most of them in a reasonable budget range are good quality. they are still the most popular support component of mattresses sold in North America. Every support material has its own prs and cons and there is a list of most of the different types of support materials in this article.
Like any combination of materials that may be used in a mattress … the goal is always to meet your needs (pressure relief and alignment) along with your preferences of “feel” and performance in a mattress that uses the highest quality materials in your price range.
Warranties are not as important to me as the materials in a mattress because the biggest reason that people would need to buy a new mattress is because of the loss of comfort or support in their old one and neither of these is covered by a warranty. The materials in a mattress say more about how long it will last or be useable for a particular person than a warranty which has very little to do with how long a mattress will last.
Both of these offer a valuable service which is the ability to adjust the layers after purchase at a reasonable (or sometimes no) cost if the initial break in and adjustment period indicates that a different layering would have been a better choice. More objective testing will often lead to the best possible choices anyway where this isn’t necessary but for those who make a “mistake” … then this can be a valuable service and much better than having to choose a whole new mattress. I personally much prefer manufacturers which offer the ability to change out a layer or make adjustments to a mattress than I do a full mattress “comfort exchange” that is offered at many retail outlets because the costs of a comfort exchange policy is added to the cost of every mattress and the people who make better choices pay for the exchanges of those who don’t. In some cases they are also structured in a way (with costs and choices involved and the price basis for an exchange) that they can actually increase store profits at the expense of the consumer.
If the two mattresses you are considering are truly similar … it seems clear to me which has better “value”.