I’m fascinated by this story. I was searching for a new mattress months ago. I found a casper.com case study from a web designer, which piqued my interest in a Casper mattress. After some research, I found sleepopolis.com. The site owner reviewed a dozen mattresses and his opinion was that Casper rated lower than its competitors, like Leesa, especially for side sleepers like me.<p>Later, the site owner mentioned he was in a legal battle with Casper and fully intended on going to war until the end. It was all over his site, blog posts and everything.<p>I was ready to buy a couple weeks ago so I checked sleepopolis.com again to check in and make a final decision. His site had been sold, all his posts about the legal stuff were gone and I remember feeling like the valuable “human-perspective” opinions of the writer were gone.<p>I would love to hear the perspective of the original Sleepopolis writer/owner - he built a valuable thing. Likely his deal prevents him from ever speaking about it publicly.<p>Side note: I bought a Leesa and it’s very firm compared to the W bed I bought a decade ago. It’s a few hundred dollars cheaper but we will probably return it before 100 days and buy W again.
I'll diverge from the main topic here for a moment. When I moved to the US I was puzzled to discover that there're stores that specialize in mattresses. Later it became apparent that US has, what seems to me, a bizarre fascination with mattresses. In my home-country (and I think many other countries) most people grew up sleeping on thin cotton-filled mattresses and the idea of mattress brands and "technology" just sounds preposterous. It seems like mattress firms have been able to reshape how a whole populace thinks about what elsewhere is a comparatively straight-forward product. Does a person really need hi-tech space-technology memory foam for a thousand dollars to sleep on? This study for example suggests that not: <a href="http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/11198791" rel="nofollow">http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/11198791</a>
I don't understand this. Large parts of the review business doesn't seem to abide by common ethical standards. Paid adverts are deceptively presented as objective reviews in a myriad ways. Is it even legal?
I got a Casper mattress when they were new and liked it a lot. But recently I had another occasion to buy a mattress — to my dismay, upon doing some research I found out they bought out a review site and they’d also increased prices and swapped out latex with cheaper materials. So I went with a less expensive Leesa mattress this time around and I sleep just as well as before.
<a href="http://freakonomics.com/podcast/mattress-store-bubble/" rel="nofollow">http://freakonomics.com/podcast/mattress-store-bubble/</a> mentions that a mattress store only has to sell 1 mattress per day to be profitable, now that's a profit margin.
I recently went bought a Casper. I didn't like it. It gave me a sore back and neck and didn't get any better until I switched. So next I ordered a Leesa. But that had the strong chemical smell. And I left it unpacked in a room with ventilation for two weeks and the smell didn't stop. Then I ordered a Tuft and Needle, and despite being the cheapest of the three (I think?) it had no odor issues and was surprisingly the more comfortable. I'm very happy with it. The return on the other two mattresses was completely painless and easy, so I highly recommend taking advantage of their 90-100 day trials.
I bet there are plenty of people Googling specifically for coupon codes and then lifting them off of review sites like Sleepopolis without even reading the review. In that situation it does not even matter how favourable the review is, just that the site has good SEO.<p>If you find a substantial seeming coupon that's valid then that's a major positive feeling that encourages completing the purchase.
You can buy a whole shipping container of Memory Foam mattresses like the Casper kind for about $200/Queen, $100/twin, $250/King from China. Log on to Import Genius and you can find all kinds of excellent suppliers. In Canada they get them in and wholesale them out. They typically sell them for about $400 for a Queen. I have one in my guest room. Doesn't smell, is comfortable if you like memory foam. My guests so far like it. I like to sleep on individual pocket mattresses (traditional).<p>Anyway, the other mattresses I bought for my dwelling in Toronto was from Queensway Mattress Warehouse across from Ikea in Etobicoke. Double size that is completely organic cotton with individual coils with a thick pillow top and box spring for $600 CAD. It is the best mattress I have eve purchases in my life.<p>My primary dwelling in DFW has mattresses that cost 3 times as much and are half as comfortable. I have come to realize that there are only 2 or 3 companies that sell mattresses in the USA and that is why they are so expensive. Total ripoff in America when it comes to mattresses.<p>Casper doesn't seem like anything special since anyone can buy from China and mark it up and sell it in a market like the US for a big profit since there is no competition really.<p>Casper just has good marketing.
I like how the final remarks so clearly show the shift in perspective, review and affiliate marketing after the Casper influence. Many of these on-demand mattress companies had 30-day return policies: has any one tried and returned such a mattress? My suspicion is that the large unwieldy-mess of the mattress suppresses ability for the customer to return, so the police is great on paper, but then you end up stuck with the mattress and settle?
As someone who grew up with the web, it feels odd that I distrust all of these direct-to-consumer product sites by default. Mattresses, underwear, watches, shaving equipment, etc. It all feels like a gimmick.
I have one right now, (I bought the mid level one) and I don't like it. Not comfortable on the long run and it seems it is actually smaller (by one inch in both sides and length) than my older mattress. If you are tall it can be a problem.<p>Good marketing, not so great of a product.
I bought a high-end Stearns and Foster 15+ years ago from a department store and it's about due for a replacement. It was expensive and worth it.<p>Now it seems the market is all about overpriced mattress stores with sleazy salesmen or start-ups selling fabric covered foam.
The FTC should treat sites which offer reviews and have affiliate links the same way they do as celebrity endorsements on social media: They should be required to disclose that, and fine those who don't.
Does anyone sleep on a hard surface? I generally don't, but when I get a migraine, I can't stand to sleep on a soft surface. I also can't deal with pillows. Maybe the reason is that I can put my body in the exact position I want without any give or movement. When I don't have a migraine, I sleep on a thin foam, but I don't mind hard surfaces with a blanket covering.
I invested in a Rumpl blanket and eventually took to putting that on the carpet, a smaller blanket to support the head, and one top cover. The Rumpl is designed to be of a similar quality to a sleeping bag but easier to spread and wash. It's an "as if perpetually travelling" mindset.
For anyone reading this interested in mattresses, I highly recommend natural latex. It's pricey, but 7 years and 17k+ hours of use later, it's still in near impeccable condition, sleeps perfectly (I got the firm) and is easily the best $2k investment I've ever made.
One of the reasons I trust the reviews on The Wirecutter/Sweethome is because they are pretty up front with disclosing they get paid via affiliate links. I don't know how these sites built up enough trust to influence people's purchasing decisions.
We bought a Costco Novaform Serafina 14" about six months ago, unpacked it and let it pop for a few days, and its been the most comfortable bed we've owned.
How do you even buy non memory foam these days?<p>I really don't understand the benefit - if you ever move in your sleep then you will be uncomfortable.
I bought a Zinus Memory Foam Mattress recently on Amazon for a 1/3 of the price of Casper. Most comfy I've ever slept on. Not sure why one would pay 3x the price.
It amuses me that many of the informal reviews and attestations in the comments echo the mattress sales pitch. Also buyers-bias.<p>I'm not saying anything is untoward.<p>I'm just saying that when someone mentions how many hours they slept on a mattress I can immediately see a sales rep or marketer pattering. Also reminds me of when audiophiles talk about their kit.