Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Our team of nine mattress experts have been doing this for years. We have tested and reviewed about three hundred mattresses and dozens of sleep accessories, from bed to toppers to headphones for sleeping. During this time, we have established a testing methodology that each mattress undergoes when it arrives at our Reno testing facility.
We take a holistic approach to mattress testing, which means our team is involved to ensure we represent all types of people. Our team has a mix of genders, body types and sleeping positions.
CNET mattress expert Owen Poole tests motion isolation with a glass of water.
Firmness
We evaluate and record two types of firmness: Subjective and objective. When testing firmness, I lie on the mattress in any sleeping position and note how it feels against my back, stomach and hips. Our entire team participates in this process to ensure that the firmness rating is not based on one body type.
The Mattress Smasher 9000 objectively measures the firmness levels of mattresses.
The objective firmness level comes from our Mattress Smasher 9000. Not only is it impressively orange, but it can scientifically rate the firmness of a bed based on the strength of a 160-pound person. We always make sure to test a bed ourselves before the MS9K takes a turn to make sure our experience is unbiased.
Motion isolation
Motion isolation is how well a bed dampens motion across the entire surface. It might not seem like a big deal, but if you sleep with another person or a furry friend, a bed with poor motion isolation can keep you up at night.
To test motion isolation, we do two things. First, I lie down on a bed and close my eyes while a teammate moves onto the bed next to me. I do this from any sleeping position and rate how much movement I feel all the time. Second, we perform the water test, which involves placing a glass of water on the edge of a bed and rolling towards it. The bed gets a lower motion isolation score if the water spills or splashes.
Edge support
If you are like me and tend to sleep on the edge of the bed or have mobility limitations, then you know how important the edge support is. To test the strength of the perimeter of the bed, we sit and lie on the edge and evaluate how deep it is. It does not have a good support of the edge if it feels like we could rotate or the edge collapses under our weight.
Many of our favorite beds, such as the Big Fig, have strong head support, which means you have access to the entire surface of the bed for sleeping.
Temperature
All beds that pass through our laboratory are tested in a temperature controlled room. Many brands claim that their beds are refreshing, but their performance does not support it. We are passionate about making sure a bed lives up to its claims. We examine the construction of the bed and rely on our first-hand experience with it to evaluate how cool it feels.
