My husband and I have been thinking about buying a new mattress for several months. We actually got talked into buying a $2000 big name innerspring by some pushy sales people and then I went home and read the horrible reviews so we cancelled the sale. I just found out that I am pregnant, so I’d really like to make a purchase soon and get the best value. Our favorite mattress was the iComfort Savant which is a plush memory foam with a cooling layer. The best deal I’ve found on it is $1999 for just the king mattress. Most memory foam mattresses are quite firm. Could we buy a decent off name memory foam mattress and add a plush gel topper to get the same results? If so, any suggestions? If we could stay at $1000 or less for the king mattress and the topper, we’d love it as we do have a baby on the way. Thanks!
Hi ashbosity,
The first place I would start is post #1 here which has all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that you will need to make the best possible decision.
Post #3 here has more about matching one mattress design to another. In the case of any of the iComforts the only way to match it would be in terms of “feel” and would require side by side testing and comparisons with another mattress based on subjective perceptions which can vary widely from person to person. I don’t know of another manufacturer who makes a mattress that uses the iComfort as a “target” for their design.
I would tend to avoid buying a mattress with the intent of adding a topper unless you can test the two together. A mattress can be a difficult enough choice and buying a mattress only to then have to go out and buy a topper which can also be a difficult choice would only introduce more variables than are necessary. Adding a topper can be a good backup if you make a mattress choice that is too firm but I wouldn’t buy a mattress with the intent of adding a topper and would focus on just a mattress by itself that was as close to your needs and preferences as possible.
There are many memory foam mattresses that have the same or better quality as the iComforts that sell for considerably less and would have similar levels of comfort/pressure relief and support/alignment even though they may “feel” different because of differences in design or the specific properties of the memory foam (there are hundreds of versions of memory foam that all have some similar slow response properties but are also quite different in many respects as well (you can read more about some of the differences between different types of memory foam in post #9 here).
Phoenix
So it seems like the best option would just be to spend the $2300 (best price with base) and get the iComfort because it would be impossible to test a mattress with a topper and all the well reviewed inexpensive memory foam mattresses I’ve found have been sold either online only or not sold in my area. Then throw in the wrench of finding a place that had a display model Savant AND a nice inexpensive memory foam and it’s probably really unlikely. I did send an email to one company (Night Therapy, I think) and they gave me a comparison model to the iComfort Savant, but all their mattresses are rated as meduim firm or firm and the Savant is plush, so I don’t know if they just made something up. Thanks!
Hi ashbosity,
This certainly isn’t the direction I would suggest (and Serta is one of the manufacturers I would tend to avoid) but of course each person has their own personal value equation and the tradeoffs that are “best” in terms of quality and value for one person may be different for someone else. I would also tend to avoid using reviews as a method of making a mattress choice unless the review includes the specifics of the quality of every layer in the mattress, the specific body type, sleeping style, and preferences of the reviewer, and is written by someone that is knowledgeable about mattress materials and how they compare to each other. A mattress is only as good as the construction and quality of the materials inside it. You can see my thoughts about reviews in post #13 here.
There are likely to be many mattresses that would provide you with good PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) that have better quality and value and may be more suitable for your needs and preferences as well.
I would personally follow the guidelines in the “read first” post I linked so you at least have some good options to make meaningful “apples to apples” comparisons with the Savant (that don’t need a topper to be comparable) before spending $1999 on a mattress that probably isn’t the best quality and value available to you. I would also make sure that you have tested it very carefully and objectively for pressure relief and alignment using the testing guidelines because testing only for more subjective feelings of “comfort” in the highly managed environment of a mattress showroom have less than even odds of making the most suitable mattress choice for long term use in “real life” (see the results of the study here).
Phoenix