Transcription
Okay, so [Music] in my possession are five of the most popular mattress brands in Australia. And in this video, I'm gonna be dishing the goods on everything you need to know about these mattresses. I'll be going over who they're best for, the reasons you should buy them, and also maybe the reasons not to buy them.
Let me start by saying this is not a sponsored video. These brands did not send me any of these mattresses. I paid cold hard cash for each of these, so my opinion wouldn't be influenced by them. But if you're from any of these brands and are watching, please hit me up.
Okay, so all of these mattresses have their own unique selling points. But if you're after a mattress that does everything pretty damn well and budget isn't a concern, you should go right ahead and check out the A.C.O.S.A. Pure mattress. The A.C.O.S.A. Pure was released in 2021 and is the top of the range in the A.C.O.S.A. lineup. The reason why I have it as my overall top pick, the best of the best, is because it kind of ticks all the boxes. It's firm, but not too firm for those with bad backs. It's still adjustable with two settings, so you can find the perfect firmness level for you. It has a seven-zone coil spring support, so it supports different areas of your body. It's a true hybrid mattress, combining the best of foam, latex, micro coils, and springs for the ultimate not too soft but responsive feel. These features do come at a cost, though, with it coming in at $2,250 for a queen. But fear not, just check out the links below in the description that will help you save money on this amazing mattress. But if you don't want to take my word for it and you want to learn more about the A.C.O.S.A. Pure mattress, keep on watching.
Now, a key selling point for buying an online mattress in a box from these brands is the fact you don't have to visit a store. And they all come with an in-home trial, meaning if you're not totally happy with how it feels, you can send it back and get a full refund. The difference here is quite varied, but most are in the 100-day trial range. Of the five brands, E.R.G.O.F.L.E.X. offers the least number of days, but still a very respectable 30 days. It's definitely enough time for you to decide whether it's the right fit. E.M.M.A., Sleeping Duck, and A.C.O.S.A. all offer a 100-night guarantee. This means if you're not happy with it, you get a full refund. The crown for the longest trial period goes to Koala at a whopping 120 nights. In my personal experience, you find the right comfort in the mattress in the first week, so all these are great options. It's only when you start customizing the firmness levels, like if you have back problems, when the longer trial periods come in handy. Because some brands, like Sleeping Duck, which is super customizable, will only send you pads on request. This means you have to account for delivery time, changing the firmness, giving it time to test, and so on. But that's not a knock on Sleeping Duck. Sending firmer or softer pads out on request and for free is a really great thing, which reduces waste.
Now, I'm sure you've seen the videos of all these brands cut together of their mattresses coming to life after unboxing. [Music] That's kind of the whole appeal of a bed in a box. But let me tell you, some of these mattresses are heavy. You're definitely going to need a friend to help you move the box once it's been delivered, because some weigh as much as 70 kilos. Unsurprisingly, these heavy boys are all hybrid mattresses that incorporate spring technology. The top ones here are the A.C.O.S.A. Pure mattress, weighing in at a huge 70 kilos. How a single person like me will maneuver it all around the house alone, I have no idea. But they did make it easier with a handle and wheels built right into the box. This is actually true for all their A.C.O.S.A. mattresses. They have this handy box feature, so shout out to them. It makes moving the mattress across the house so much easier. The second heaviest mattress is the Sleeping Duck, weighing in at 52 kilos. Like the A.C.O.S.A., it also has the same handle and wheels on the box, which was definitely appreciated when you want to go down a rabbit hole of mattresses and order 10 like I did. Rounding off the heaviest three came the top-of-the-range Koala mattress, the Koala Soulmate mattress, at 50 kilos. While the boxes didn't have any of the smart ergonomic features of the A.C.O.S.A. and the S.D. mattresses, they took another approach by just splitting the mattress into two boxes. All of Koala's mattresses come in two boxes: a top layer, which they call the comfort layer, that is flippable to give you two firmness settings, and the bottom face layer. This is actually pretty smart and a good idea if you want to move your mattress up some stairs.
While on the topic of heavy-ass mattresses and moving them around, it's probably a good idea to look at what's the best mattress for a bad back. Let me firstly give a shout out to Sleeping Duck. If you know what you want, which is a mattress with low disturbance to your partner, with the responsiveness and support of coil springs, then get the S.D. They are the only ones at the time of recording to offer essentially a white glove service, where they will move their 50-kilo mattress into the room and take away your old mattress. My only gripe is that the firmness level is not immediately changeable. You see, the S.D. is highly customizable, but you have to custom order the replacement parts. The replacement pads are completely free, but it would have been handy to be able to change the firmness immediately. I suppose it's a good way to reduce waste, so I guess it's a positive. They're also the only ones where you can change the firmness level on each side of the bed, meaning if your partner doesn't like a firm mattress, they can sleep on a softer side. And for the record, no, you can't feel the divide of the pads when you roll from one side to the other because it's covered by a comfort layer.
Another great option is the original A.C.O.S.A. mattress, which has three levels of adjustability from medium to medium-firm or firm. There's no ringing of customer service to organize additional parts to change the firmness, and you can do it all by yourself by unzipping the mattress cover and flipping the layers. It's pretty simple to do. But I will say that I found that A.C.O.S.A. is the firmer of all the memory foam-only mattresses that I tested. So this is definitely one to pick if you like your mattress on the firmer side. The three Koala mattresses and A.C.O.S.A.'s top-of-the-line Pure mattress round off our list of adjustable firmness mattresses with two firmness settings. All four of these mattresses allow you to change the foam from medium-firm to firm by essentially just replacing a comfort layer that sits on top. Think of the comfort layer as essentially a mattress topper that detaches, which can change the firmness when flipped. It was very easy to change, and again, keep in mind the A.C.O.S.A. was on the firmer side compared to the Koala.
So, how about the temperature regulation on these mattresses? If you're someone who sleeps hot, I'd give you the A.C.O.S.A. Vital, E.M.M.A. Comfort, and the new Koala I.M.S. Unsurprisingly, these are all the budget versions of the mattresses. But hey, vice versa, if you like a mattress that retains heat particularly well, then these are the ones for you, and they're super affordable. The A.C.O.S.A. Pure mattress, Sleeping Duck, and E.R.G.O.F.L.E.X. for the best performers if sleeping hot is a problem for you. Over the seven days sleeping on each of them, I never woke up feeling like the mattress was too warm. I think the common denominator here is these mattresses all have their own cooling mechanisms. Unlike their original value range, K.O.S.A. mattress, which has a gel-infused memory foam to help dissipate heat, the luxury Pure mattress uses an ultra-breathable latex foam, micro coils, and pocket springs, which allows the air to flow freely throughout the mattress. While the foam-only did a good job, the Pure mattress performed noticeably better. Sleeping Duck was on par with the A.C.O.S.A.'s top-of-the-range mattress but came in at a lower price. Their combination of springs and patented anti-gravity surface foam helps keep the whole mattress naturally ventilated. E.R.G.O.F.L.E.X. edging out the more expensive Koala mattresses was a real surprise and a testament to their decade-long innovation. E.R.G.O.F.L.E.X. was one of the very first affordably priced memory foam mattress competitors to the market leader Tempur, which retails for obscene amounts of money, and you could argue an original pioneer of the whole mattress in a box movement. So I guess I was pleasantly surprised that E.R.G.O.F.L.E.X. still held its own among mattresses which were double its cost.
Okay, what about those who are on the larger side? Testing the weight limit of each of these mattresses is one I definitely wanted to one-up my mate Lawrence with. Unfortunately, my budget doesn't get me a 15-ton steamroller. [Music] But if you have a steamroller that is over 15 tons, get in touch. However, I can tell you that anecdotally, hybrid mattresses, those that combine memory foam and springs, felt like it gave me the most support because the foam gave it a cloud-like comfort while the springs gave it that support and responsiveness I needed. These are like the A.C.O.S.A. Pure mattress, Koala's Soulmate, and Sleeping Duck Mac 2. All of these three are on the pricier end of the spectrum, but as with most things, you get what you pay for. Officially, A.C.O.S.A. are rated as the best at 150 kilos per person. Next came the E.M.M.A. and Sleeping Duck at 130 kilos, then finally the E.R.G.O.F.L.E.X. at 114 kilos. You might be wondering, what about Koala? Well, I tried asking through their live chat, but got all the "all of our mattresses come with a 100-night guarantee and a 10-year warranty blah blah blah" line, which is underwhelming yet completely justified, and I totally get why they do it. There is no standard system by which all the mattresses are tested, so one brand's rating is only as good as theirs. So in the end, it really does come down to how you feel, and if you don't like it, send it back. Just so we're clear, hybrid mattresses, which are nice and thick, good. Slim foam-only mattresses, bad.
Okay, now let's talk about sleeping positions. If you're someone like me who likes to sleep in every position possible, I'll tell you straight up that a good pillow will make the most, if not more, of a difference than the mattress. Generally, side sleepers will want to steer towards a hybrid foam plus hybrid mattress because it means it's easier to roll from side to side. On a more budget-friendly end, you have the E.M.M.A. Diamond mattress, while on the Jeff Bezos end, I mean luxury end, you have the Koala Soulmate. Back sleepers should be able to get by with foam-only because you're going to be very well supported. For stomach sleepers, I recommend you get some help or a massage table. No, really. I think stomach sleepers, you'd be best off with a softer mattress. The softest mattress I found were the Koala range because of their comfort plush layer. In all seriousness, as a combo sleeper, it feels like this really comes down to your firmness preference. For me, I enjoyed the softer but responsive mattresses like A.C.O.S.A.'s Pure, Koala's Soulmate, and E.R.G.O.F.L.E.X. 5G.
If you're still thinking, "Ali, which one should I spend my hard-earned money on?" Well, here's what I think. If you have a bit of cash to splash, A.C.O.S.A.'s Pure mattress is the one to get for all the reasons mentioned. It comes out on top because it does everything so well. Being the newest mattress of all 10, it's clear they looked at what's out there in the market and really went all out to outdo everyone else.
Okay, what about the best budget pick? E.M.M.A.'s Diamond Hybrid mattress is an absolute steal if you can get it for under a thousand dollars. At the time of this video, it's retailing at $1,599 for a queen, but it's advertised at 45% off. While E.M.M.A.'s Diamond Hybrid mattress wasn't the best in my tests, when you factor in the prices of who it's competing against, it becomes a really attractive option. If the A.C.O.S.A. Pure wasn't an option, my personal pick would be the E.R.G.O.F.L.E.X. That's because I sleep a little hot in combination styles and enjoy a softer foam mattress. That said, my partner has a Sleeping Duck because it's the only one that can be configured firmly on his side and medium on my side. Win-win for all.
So, what do you think? Do you agree with my picks? Anything else about any of these mattresses you'd like to add to the conversation? Do you have any of these mattresses yourself? I'd love to hear from you. Let me know what you think in the comments below. Before I leave you, if you're looking for a great price on mattresses, check out the links in the description or visit mattressreviews.com, where we'll help you save money on your next mattress purchase. Thanks for watching, and catch you next time. [Music]
Okay, so fun fact is, E.M.M.A. and A.C.O.S.A. are the only brands that come with plastic cutters. But can someone from A.C.O.S.A. please tell me what is up with this? There is no blade. Thank god for E.M.M.A. Look at all that blade space. We used the E.M.M.A. to pretty much unbox all the mattresses.