Hi Miacane22,
These guidelines may be helpful in helping you to avoid most of the worst choices when you are mattress shopping (such as the Optimum or the iComfort). You can see my thoughts about the iComfort lineup in post #11 here and the Optimum lineup in post #48 here. I would also avoid the Novaform.
The most effective way to find a specific mattress is through personal testing on mattresses with the help and guidance of someone with the skill and knowledge to know what to look for and can help you make your best choices based on your own unique needs and preferences. What I call “theory at a distance” is always based on “averages” and would require a longer phone conversation with someone who was actually making or selling a mattress, knew every component and material that was in it and how they interacted together, and had a customer base that included many different body types and sleeping styles which can help them “match” you to a mattress based on averages and the experience and feedback of other people on specific mattresses.
In general it is more effective to first find the best outlets and manufacturers in your area and then to begin the process of choosing a mattress. If you choose the more typical mass market outlets such as chain stores which sell mostly major brands … the odds are good that no matter what you choose it is unlikely to have good quality and value and the knowledge and experience of the people who work there will not be nearly as helpful. They will tend to be more focused on “making the sale” than on helping you to make the best possible choice. On the other hand … if you go to the better local manufacturers or sleep shops … almost anything you choose will have good quality and value and they will have the knowledge and experience to “fit” you to the best possible choice inside your budget range so that you will be as happy with your mattress in the long term as you are on the day you buy it.
This article will help you recognize the better places to buy a mattress and what to look for.
I would focus on the manufacturers and outlets that were in the links that I included in my last post. They make and sell the highest quality and value mattresses you will find in your area but most of all they will be able to tell you what is in their mattresses and which materials and combinations may work best for your unique needs and preferences.
Phoenix