Hi Redcoat,
There is more information in post #9 here about the different ways that one mattress can “match” or “approximate” another one. Every layer and component in a mattress (including the cover and any quilting materials) will affect the feel and performance of every other layer and component and the mattress “as a whole” so unless you are able to find another mattress that uses exactly the same type of materials, components, cover and quilting, layer thicknesses, layer firmnesses, and overall design (which would be very unlikely) then there really isn’t a reliable way to match one mattress to another one in terms of “comfort”, firmness, and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your Personal preferences) based on the specifications of the mattresses (even assuming that you can find out all the specifications you would need for both mattresses you are comparing in the first place).
Mattress manufacturers generally try to differentiate their mattress from the mattresses made by other manufacturers and don’t normally try to “match” another mattress that is made by a different manufacturer so unless a manufacturer specifically says in their description of a mattress that one of their mattresses in the same general category is specifically designed to “match” or “approximate” another one in terms of firmness or “feel” and PPP and/or they are very familiar with both mattresses and can provide reliable guidance about how they compare based on the “averages” of a larger group of people that have compared them (different people may have very different opinions about how two mattresses compare) … the only reliable way to know for certain how two mattresses would compare for you in terms of how they “feel” or in terms of firmness or PPP (regardless of anyone else’s opinions of how they compare which may be different from your own) would be based on your own careful testing or actual sleeping experience on both of them.
Having said that … if you are researching online memory foam mattresses then the mattress shopping tutorial includes a link to a list of some of the better online memory foam options I’m aware of (in the optional online step) and several of them make memory foam mattresses that are designed and and that they describe as being reasonable approximations of the general firmness of many of the Tempurpedic mattresses. Several of the other retailers or manufacturers that are on the list that don’t specifically describe their mattresses as being similar to one of the Tempurpedic models would probably also be able to give you more information about which of their mattress would be the closest approximation to the Tempurpedic Cloud Elite as well.
Convoluted foam is softer than a solid layer of the same material and in some cases can allow for more airflow through a mattress as well (although this may not be as effective in the deeper layers). Different combinations of materials and components in a mattress are just a way to achieve the firmness, feel, and performance that are part of the design goals of a mattress. There is also more about convoluted foam layers in post #2 here. While the density of memory foam and polyfoam is the single biggest factor that can affect the durability of the material … I would also keep in mind that two foam layers that are the same density may not have the same firmness level because a specific density of foam can be made in a wide range of firmness levels. Since the information they provided doesn’t include any information about the firmness of each of the two layers or any of the other specs of the foam layers … it’s not possible to tell if they are the same based on the density of each layer alone.
Phoenix