If you’re on the lookout for a new mattress, there’s a good chance you’re primarily focused on two factors; price and comfort.
When it comes to investing in a new mattress, you’ll always want to choose a model that’s been designed for your sleep style and also curated to offer the right amount of support for specific joints and muscle groups.
From doing any research online on those topics above, it’s quite likely you’ve been directed to either a Bear Mattress or a Tempur Pedic — and for good reason. Both of these mattresses have been developed in a unique way and feature their own set of proprietary technologies to make sleeping a lot easier.
Whether you’re dealing with achy joints or simply sore muscles in the neck or back, these beds should do the trick at pressure relief and lifting weight from the sore points on your body.
With that said, in this article we’ll take a look at both the Beat Mattress and the Tempur Pedic Cloud Luxe to give you all you need to know to choose between the two outstanding mattresses.
The Bear Mattress Internal Layout
To kick things off, we’ll take a look at the Bear Mattress and what you’ll find inside this bed.
The mattress comes in at ten inches thick, which is around average for a memory foam mattress, though some models are a little thicker than this. There are three layers of foam in here, which have all been designed in a way that offers their own type of support.
You’re going to see a gel-infused foam come into play here, for cooling. There’s a quick response foam here too, that enables the mattress to return to its original shape and also to support your joints a little better. To end, there’s a core foam in the base of the mattress that offers all of the lumbar support you’ll need to reduce the chance of an aching back.
The Upper Layer
Sitting in the top of the mattress is an inch thick graphite-based memory foam which is the material that Bear have chosen to offer the cooling effect. With most companies opting for a gel-only approach, the graphite is a little cooler.
You’ll see that the top layer is 7x cooler than a typical memory foam mattress, which means you’re getting a cooling sensation that is generally reserved for spring mattresses or curated latex.
That said, this bed will be a winner for those in hotter climates, or for anyone who sleeps a little hot and often wakes in a sweat during the night.
The Core Layer
In the core of the mattress you’ll see a layer that is a 2.5 inch support foam which is the quick response foam. This is where you’ll experience the majority of back and joint support coming into play to reduce aches and pains.
You’ll be able to feel your body sinking beyond the comfort layer and landing in the core support layer, which will hold up your hips, neck and shoulders and allow the rest of the body to remain supported and relaxed.
With the foam being 2.5 inches thick, it’s ideal enough for you to sink into, though it’s not too deep where you’ll be dealing with the worrisome and rather uncomfortable enveloping feeling.
Bear calls this foam their ‘Bear Quick Response Foam’ and we’re standing by this as one of the more well-developed response foams out there.
The Foundation or Base Layer
Where the majority of your support will come from is in the 6.5 inch base layer of the mattress. Making up more than half of the entire bed, this foam is the material that will be holding your spine in place and supporting your back’s alignment as you sleep.
When it comes to the firmness of the upper layers, these foam layers will compress and you’ll essentially be left to sink down to this base layer for the majority of your support.
To add, this layer is a little firmer than most base layers, which is, again ideal for our readers and we’re glad to say that it’s offering a good amount of support to reduce sagging or divots in the mattress over time.
The Cover
When it comes to encasing the mattress, there’s a high-quality Celliant cover here which integrates cooling technology. To go hand in hand with the graphite foam, this cover is also working to keep the mattress cool as you sleep and to wick away heat from sore, hot spot joints.
We’d also like to highlight that this is a great technology for athletes looking to reduce inflammation and get a good night’s rest after a solid workout or sporting event.
The Bear Mattress’s Support and Firmness Options
Here at Sleepify, we generally are a little wary when it comes to ‘universal’ comfort mattresses that offer just one firmness level.
Of course, it is possible to get an all-rounder if you’ve designed a mattress well enough, however, when it comes to customisation and selecting a mattress you really like, it’s good to have extra firmness options.
That said, the Bear does only come with a model that is 7 on the firmness scale, which means you’re sitting at around the mid to firmer end of things, making this bed more ideal for the back and tummy sleepers over the side sleepers.
That in mind, the upper comfort foams do their best to enable plenty of sinkage and plushness on top of the rather firm base layer, though if you’re someone who’s more partial to a nice, soft bed — this one might not be for you.
One thing to note, on the good end of things, is that this mattress will be more ideal for sleepers who weigh a little more. If you’re a bigger guy or girl, this mattress will offer a firmness that presents enough support for you to have body contouring and spinal alignment kept in check.
For example, if you’re quite light, you won’t be heavy enough to press down on the foams and really sink into this mattress.
On the other end of the scale though, if you are a little heavier, the top two layers will simply flatten beneath you and you’ll be left to rest on the more rigid base layer, which might not be too comfortable depending on how you like to sleep.
The firmness should be an ‘all rounder’ so to speak, though being at a seven rather than a 5.5 or a 6 makes this bed a little too firm for us to give the go ahead for every sleeper and sleep style. If you’re a side sleeper, there’s not too much of a chance you’ll see shoulder and hip sinkage that keeps you comfortable.
To end, the comfort portion of the Bear Mattress, we will say that the cooling effect and the responsive foams do their best to keep your comfortable if you’re the right weight for sleeping within these layers. The core layer is ideal for keeping you supported and the base layer is good for lumbar support, though it’s a hit or miss if you’re too heavy or too light.
The Comfort and Sleep Experience
When it comes to hopping into bed, things get quite interesting.
The Bear Mattress’s curated graphite foam and quick response foams work in cohesion to offer sleepers enough plushness to reduce pain and inflammation in the joints.
You’ll find that because the bed sleeps so cool you’re not going to be in as much pain as if you were sleeping on an older innerspring for example. As you’d agree, when our joints are sore, the last thing we want is to stay in a hot bed and have these hot spots amplified, and the graphite cooling tech comes in most handy here.
As for the quick response foam, you’re free to move about the mattress and change sleeping positions without worrying about falling into a divot. The foams respond quite quickly and you’ll be able to swap and toss or turn through the night and not need to worry about whether the indentation has returned to normal.
One final thing to note, which is rather exciting for us, is that the Bear Mattress does have a bit of bounce! As you might know, memory foam is very subdued and rather dull when it comes to responsiveness and bounce, though Bear have worked to create a foam that is able to offer some spring and rebound.
Heat Regulation
From the materials we mentioned above, there’s not a chance you’ll see any heat problems on this mattress.
With marketing touting the Bear as being up to 7 times cooler than typical foam beds, you’re going to be able to rest assured that you’re kept cool. Ideal for hotter climates, the Bear will also be able to stimulate the recovery of injured muscles and sore spots on the body.
One point to keep in mind that cool sleeping surfaces have been proven to improve sleep, and with the Bear offering exactly this, you can expect to fall asleep and stay asleep throughout the night — aiding muscle recovery and getting you ready for a better day ahead.
Motion Isolation and Contouring
When it comes to muting movement and allowing the body to be contoured, this is where things get a little complicated.
As we outlined already, the Bear’s single firmness level of a 7 out of 10 prevents lighter sleepers from really sinking and being contoured into this mattress. If you’re a heavier person, however, you will be well-contoured and cradled by the bed.
All sleepers will experience some level of sinkage, though, some more than others which can be a deal breaker if you really love that feeling.
Getting into motion isolation now, and there’s an average amount here. The response foam does come in handy at dulling movement and shakes in the bed, though it isn’t anything amazing. If you do get in and out of bed throughout the night, you’re not going to wake your partner unless you really try to.
In all, body contouring is ideal for heavier sleepers and rather lacklustre if you don’t weigh a whole lot and motion isolation is average at best.
Usability and Off-gassing
For the smell and off-gassing experience, we’re glad to say that right out of the box the bed doesn’t smell too bad.
There is a tad bit of chemical manufacturing smell here, which is common for memory foam mattresses, though it’s minimal enough for you to sleep on the same night after delivery. You don’t have to worry about airing out this bed for a week or two.
In most cases, the bed is aired out within around an hour or two and ready by bed time.
Customer Support
For the customers ordering online, we’re glad to say the experience is relatively simple and there is a customer support team who are able to help out should there be any issues or queries about the mattress.
There’s an active phone line and a help centre that you can draw upon should there be any issues, and this is great news and gives Bear extra points from us.
Essential Perks
A 100-night Sleep Trial
A 10-year Guarantee
Free Shipping
Easy Returns
A USA-made Assurance
Pricing of the Bear Mattress
The good news when it comes to pricing is that Bear often has sales and the mattress isn’t all that expensive to begin with — especially when compared to something like a Tempur mattress.
You can expect to pay around $850 for a Queen Size mattress and that’s good news for those looking to get a great comfort-focused mattress on a budget.
With all that said, let’s take a look below at the competing all-foam Tempur Pedic Cloud Luxe and why you might want to invest a little more into your sleeping experience.
The Tempur-Pedic Cloud Luxe Breeze Internal Layout
When it comes to the internal design of the Cloud Luxe, the Tempur model arguably blows the Bear Mattress out of the water. Coming from the world’s pioneers of memory foam, Tempur have worked to develop some rather complex and comfort-focused technologies here.
Inside the Tempur Pedic Cloud Luxe you’ll see a number of advanced foams that Tempur have developed explicitly for there all-foam beds, and we’re happy to say that there isn’t all too much landing in this bed that is ‘generic’ or traditional.
That said, you are getting what you pay for with regards to a unique sleep experience.
A Look Inside
Disclaimer: a lot of the foam layers and materials aren’t fully disclosed, so there may be more inside this mattress than what has been outlined by Tempur.
The Upper Layer
In the upper levels of this mattress you’ll find Tempur’s PureCool+ foam which acts as the brand’s comfort layer. It’s been developed to absorb and wick away body heat as you sleep. There’s a cooling sensation here that’s more curated and engineered to keep cool than typical gel-foam which means you’re not going to experience any ‘hot spots’ in this mattress.
A lot of the time, there’s issues in memory foam where you’ll sleep in one position for too long, and see this space in the bed become exceedingly warm, to the point where you’ll need to roll into another spot. On the Cloud Luxe, the cooling foams are so effective that you’ll not need to move out of these positions as they simply don’t over heat.
All that said, a lot of information on how these materials work isn’t disclosed, which means there aren’t too many ways to describe these sensations and technologies other than by going on what Tempur have stated.
The Core Layer
In the middle of the mattress, an offering a tonne of added comfort features is the TEMPUR-CM+ material which is, again, a proprietary material.
As you’d expected, this is the layer where you’ll find a majority of your support for back pain and joint problems. There’s also a lot of cooling tech in here to boot, so you won’t be suffering through painful, hot spots in the joints. When things get warm and painful, the CM+ material works to cool things down.
This material is also added to the entire mattress for a well-balanced sensation, which means whether you’re experiencing pain in the hips, shoulders or neck, you’re getting the support you need to have a good night’s rest.
Think of this layer as Tempur’s material to keep you supported and cool throughout the night, without causing any over-sinkage.
The Base Layer
Coming in at the bottom of all the cooling layers is the Ventilated TEMPUR-APR foam, which is relatively firm when compared to the others — though still offers cooling features and pressure relief.
Unlike the Bear Mattress, this material is also pressure relieving and contouring rather than simply a ‘solid’ base in the bottom of the mattress. Both Tempur and reviewers have touted that this material is breathable and offers pressure relief along with support — something that could only occur with a custom-designed material.
Sleepers of all weights will find that this is the material layer that offers the spinal alignment features and keeps you from experiencing back pain as you sleep or wakeup.
The Cover
Competing directly with the cooling and athlete-friendly sensation in the Bear Mattress is the SmartClimate Dual Cover System.
When it comes to muscle recovery and simply a good night’s sleep, this cover is going to be your best friend. As it encases the mattress and is the closest material to the body, you’re getting an actively cooled feel here, which means it remains cool to the touch at all times.
It’s also been designed to zip on and off the mattress which means it’s easy to keep clean and free of impurities that might cause allergies.
To end, this cover also features the cooling technology, with this being so effective it’s actually cool to the touch. You’ll be lying down on a nice, cool and refreshing surface every time you go to bed each night.
The Cloud Luxe’s Support and Firmness Options
Where the big differences continue is in the firmness and support.
As we mentioned, the Bear Mattress is one of the firmer models on the market, and is especially firm when compared to the 4 to 5 on the firmness scale that you’ll find on the Cloud Luxe. You’re much more able to sink into this mattress than the Bear, and that’s great for joint pressure relief.
However, if you weigh a little more, you’re really going to fall deep into this mattress as you sleep and essentially be enveloped by the first two layers.
One thing to keep in mind is that even though might sink quite far into this mattress, you’re not going to experience any over heating issues here. There’s plenty of cooling tech to ensure your body heat is absorbed and expelled out of the mattress.
There is the potential of being a little uncomfortable if you’re not a fan of the cradling or hugging feeling though. That said, if you don’t like this feeling, it would be a good idea to consider the Bear mattress as it’s quite firm.
One thing to keep in mind is that you can experience a hotter sleep in the first few weeks with this mattress as the foams expand and adapt to the temperature. If you’re hot, for example, this feeling will fade with time.
In all, this is one of the softer mattresses on the market today and may be a little too plush for everyone, especially for back and tummy sleepers.
The Comfort and Sleep Experience
With the firmness or plushness outlined above, it’s not too hard to see that the sleeping experience on this mattress is going to be cloud-like.
We all know that memory foam is famous for that plush and marshmallow-like feeling, and the Cloud Luxe is no different. It’s a very soft mattress that is going to work hard to provide that weightless feeling most sleepers crave.
It’s good to keep in mind that there is a time you’ll need to wait for the body to fully fall into the comfort layers and support layer, though once you do you won’t want to leave the mattress.
It’s exceptionally comfortable and we’re happy to say that the cushioning and proprietary materials really do offer a sleep experience you can’t find anywhere else. It’s so plush, in fact, that your muscles and joints won’t have any pressure pushing into them at all, keeping you free to sleep without pain.
One final thing we’d like to mention is that the materials and foams are very well-built and of a high quality, and because of this you’re not going to see any permanent sinkage or sagging in the mattress with time — making this a decade-long mattress.
Heat Regulation
With both of these mattresses focusing heavily on heat regulation, you’re all set on either of these. However, the Cloud Luxe does approach this issue in a rather unique and different way.
In the early days of Tempur, these beds were seen as a heat sink and were rather warm when compared to innerspring models. Though, fast forward to today and you’re certainly not going to be dealing with this.
The cooling technologies we mentioned above essentially remain actively working throughout the night and are designed in a way that works to continually absorb and wick away heat as you sleep.
An all-night cooling sensation is common to experience here, and that means you’re not going to wake up hot like on other foam mattresses. Some of the other models on the market hit a ‘heat saturation’ point and can no longer continue cooling, and the Tempur model does nothing of the sort.
Keeping in mind that there is advanced cooling technology here and a design that’s been carefully curated by Tempur, you can rest assured that getting a cool night’s sleep, even in cities like Darwin and Cairns, is on the cards here.
Motion Isolation and Contouring
As memory foam is motion isolating by design, it’s not too hard to guess where the Cloud Luxe falls on the motion isolation spectrum. It’s incredibly good at dulling almost all movement from a co-sleeper.
With the Tempur model being one of the most plush in the industry you’re not going to experience any motion here at all. It’s one of the most ideal mattresses for those who sleep with a partner who moves a little too much during the night, and we’d stand by the Cloud Luxe as the best of the best when it comes to keeping you asleep without disruption.
When we come to contouring and joint support, the Cloud Luxe is also a winner in that it has the ability to sink a lot lower than most other mattresses on the market. That said, side sleepers will have a tonne of sinkage room here for the shoulders and hips to dip into the mattress.
One final thing to note is that being so plush, there’s a tendency for the bed to feel a little dull and mushy — though it isn’t as bad as some other poorly designed mattresses out there.
Customer Support
As you might already know, Tempur are primarily selling their mattresses at local retailers, which means the online experience isn’t all that developed just yet.
The brand is working on expanding their all-online offering and experience, though it’s still far behind a lot of the competition. With that said, you’re often going to be a little confused by salespeople and are unlikely to have as smooth of an experience when compared to the Bear Mattress.
If you’re concerned about the buying experience, and this is a big focal point for you, it might be best to consider the Bear Mattress over the Tempur.
Essential Perks
A 90-night Sleep Trial
A 10-year Guarantee
At-home Delivery by Tempur Pedic.
Pricing
As for the pricing of the Cloud Luxe, this is a high-end mattress by Tempur which makes it a little more costly than the Bear and also a lot of other mattresses on the market today.
The cost of the Cloud Luxe is generally dependant on the store you’re shopping in and the sales and discounts they have running. In a lot of cases, you can find a sale or a discount, though the mattresses are generally priced at around $4,499 making them a little bit much to stomach for some.
One thing to note is that there is a lot of proprietary technology coming into play here, so you are getting what you pay for with the Tempur.
Choosing the Cloud Luxe or the Bear Mattress
To end our comparison we’ll take a look at the two mattresses and give you a guide on which mattress is for who.
Choose the Bear Mattress for:
A Subdued Memory Foam Feel
Compared to the Cloud Luxe, the Bear is your top choice for a mattress that has a memory foam feel but isn’t going to engulf you as you sleep. It’s our top choice for back and tummy sleepers.
An Athlete-focused Rest
With cooling tech and sport-focused features, the Bear mattress is a good choice for those looking to enhance their muscle recovery and keep on top of their fitness goals.
Choose the Cloud Luxe for:
An Authentic Memory Foam Feel
You can’t beat the memory foam feel on the Cloud Luxe and this is our top choice for those looking to get that plush, cloud-like sinking sensation from their mattress.
Optimal Motion Isolation
Being ultra-plush you’re unlikely to feel any movement from a co-sleeper, which is fantastic for those who routinely wake during the night when a partner gets in and out of bed.
The Takeaway
All things considered, both of these mattresses are an excellent choice for our readers and we’re more than happy to recommend both of these.
Be sure to keep your own sleep style and preferences in mind with these beds and choose one that you know will suit your way of sleeping the best.
