Hi HarpoonIPA,
The most effective way to find what you are looking for … no matter how challenging … is to first focus on finding an outlet that can either make or sells a mattress that fits your needs and preferences. This outlet would have people that take a genuine interest in your unique situation and explain to you why they are recommending certain materials and constructions.
These types of outlets and people are much less common that the “typical” outlets where people generally buy a mattress and they don’t normally involve mattresses made by major brands (like Sealy or King Koil).
While the King Koil mattress uses higher quality materials that may fit your needs for pressure relief and alignment and be more durable than most mainstream mattresses … it also seems that it doesn’t fit your “preferences” in terms of motion restriction which is a fairly common complaint with various types of mattresses that include thicker layers of memory foam or in some cases even foams of any type that are too thick and soft. It sounds to me like the inevitable softening of the memory foam and the qualities of memory foam itself along with some softening of the polyfoam used in the mattress (even though it’s higher than average quality) may still be OK for your needs (pressure relief and alignment) but not your preferences (ease of movement). Your thoughts that latex may work better for you both in terms of durability and ease of movement are in the right direction IMO.
Having said this … the type of latex mattress that would work best for you is still very important. Just because a mattress contains higher quality materials doesn’t mean it would be suitable for you.
To get the best combination of pressure relief and alignment will often involve the use of several layers in the mattress rather than the single layer Edsele. Of course your personal experience is always more accurate and if you have tested the Edsele and it provides both the pressure relief and alignment you need along with the feel and ease of movement you prefer than it would be a good choice no matter what “theory” says. A mattress with slightly thicker layers though would be more adaptable to different sleeping positions and movement without the feeling that you may be bottoming out or the mattress feeling too firm when it compresses more.
Part of the difficulty is that your budget is somewhat limiting for the use of several thicker layers of latex but there are also other alternatives that can be used in the support layers of a mattress that are less costly and latex can be used in the more critical comfort layers in these cases.
There are really two directions you could go with this. The first (and generally the first preference) is to find and work with a local manufacturer or a sleep shop that has a close relationship with a local or independent manufacturer that can help you either choose or will build a mattress that is in line with your budget and needs. This is generally the most “accurate” because they can be there in person to see how you respond to different types of layering and materials and give you the benefit of their “in person” advice and guidance.
The second alternative is to work with an online manufacturer that has the knowledge, skills, and ability to help you make your best choices within the limits of the mattresses and designs they make and sell. This can also be a way to get higher value and use higher quality materials in your budget range if there are no local manufacturers or sleep shops that can provide this locally. Local testing can still help them to help you mre effectively though.
If you let me know the zip or city you are in I’d be happy to let you know of any better choices in your area that I know of.
Some of the best online manufacturers in the country are members of this site and are listed in post #21 here. If you choose to go in the online direction … I would start with some initial research on their websites to get a sense of what is available in your budget range (there are several there that make all latex mattresses in full size that are within your budget range) followed by more lengthy conversations with the ones that fit what you are looking for that will help you make good choices. Some of them can make a mattress or variations that isn’t specifically shown on their site. The more you talk with them and the better your questions and feedback about the results of what you have tried locally … the better than can help you.
Phoenix