Hi “L”,
Sometimes it doesn’t get any easier … especially if you are hoping to find something that is the same or very similar to what you had before with only half the budget.
There are really two approaches you can take. The first is to try and “duplicate” another mattress but this can be difficult because even relatively small differences between the materials and components (including a cover) or the design of two mattresses can make a surprisingly significant difference in some cases. This includes the differences between some of the many types of memory foam in terms of their response time, their temperature sensitivity, their firmness, and their point elasticity (their ability to contour to the shape of the body) and their sleeping temperature. There is more about the many differences between different types of memory foam in post #9 here and post #8 here.
There is also more about the different ways that one mattress can match another one in post #9 here. I would keep in mind that while you can match the “quality” of materials based on specs … when you are looking at materials that are different you won’t be able to match how they feel or PPP based on specs. In most cases the layers that compress the most when you lie on a mattress (which in most mattresses are the upper layers) will make the biggest difference in how a mattress “feels” but every layer of a mattress will have some effect on every other layer so if a mattress you are looking at has a transition layer that is different from the latex that you had in your previous mattress this can make a significant difference in how it feels or how well it keeps you in alignment even if the top layer of memory foam was the same (and even this may be difficult to match with memory foam as well).
Sometimes when most of your efforts are focused on the “target” of another mattress you can lose sight of the most important target of all which is how well a mattress will match your specific needs and preferences in terms of PPP. Don’t forget that while the mattress you had may be the best you are familiar with … it may not be the best there is. It would also be difficult to find a mattress that is similar for half the cost when your last mattress was a great value choice already and the things that you would need to give up to cut your budget in half could result in significant differences between the feel and performance of the mattress. In effect you are looking at traditional “memory foam mattresses” rather than a “memory foam/latex hybrid” and while each type of mattress can have many variations … in general terms they can be quite different from each other.
Other than this … the other approach you can take may be more effective which is to choose a mattress that is the best match for you in terms of PPP (so your target is PPP instead of your last mattress) and this would be similar to the approach you used when you made your last purchase. While it may end up being different, it may be “just as good” or it could be even better. This means that you would put less importance on how well a mattress “matched” another one and more on how well it matched your needs and preferences in terms of PPP along with all the other factors that are involved in the “value” of a mattress purchase (see post #13 here). This may be even more important if there is a significant difference in your budget.
While the top layer may be similar … the transition layer would be very different (and less resilient than latex). Since this mattress is somewhat similar to the Tempurpedic Cloud Luxe I would see how you feel testing a Cloud Luxe so you have a better frame of reference for how it may feel for you.
They certainly use good quality materials but once again the design would be completely different with different memory foam, and different transition layers as well. When you are considering a mattress which you can’t test in person then the options you have after a purchase to rearrange or exchange layers, fine tune the mattress, or even return it may become more important. From a material perspective they are certainly good quality/value as well but as you know this is only one of many parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase. In terms of the base … your body weight and how much the support system flexes when you lie on it will play a more important role than any weight differences between the mattresses you are considering once you consider that the weight of the mattress will be evenly spread out over the entire support surface.
A forum search on sleepwarehouse (you can just click the link) will bring up most of the comments I’ve made and what I know about them along with more information and feedback from other forum members. You can also do a site search on the exact phrase “sleep warehouse” (you can just click this as well) to bring up any additional posts that the forum search for the single word may have missed.
Phoenix