You’ve probably seen the TV commercials.

And it seems to be the buzz among mattress buyers. I’m talking, of course, about the Sleep Number bed.

If you don’t already know, the Sleep Number bed is an airbed. It uses air as the main support feature, unlike internal springs, water or memory foam.

I am going to tell you its main advantages and disadvantages.

However, first I want to tell you that I am uniquely qualified to provide this information. That’s because I recently spent at least 250 hours browsing nearly 50 online forums, message boards, consumer websites, etc. collect information from at least 1,600 people on what they think of their mattresses.

Advantage

Comfort – Most people are satisfied with the comfort of their Sleep Number bed. In fact, those who like the bed usually do it with passion.

Adjustable Firmness: The Sleep Number bed provides adjustable firmness at the push of a button, just like most airbeds. More air in the mattress means firmer and vice versa. The Sleep Number bed offers duel air chambers that allow two sleepers in the bed to have their own firmness setting. And the bed is called “Sleep Number” because the firmness level is indicated by a number. The tighter the setting, the higher the number.

Disadvantages

Air Loss: All air mattresses, by their nature, will lose air over time (permeation) and it will be necessary to add air to compensate. However, based on my research, about 11% of Sleep Number bed owners reported frequent and significant air leaks. Apparently this was mainly due to faulty air pumps and connections and not simply permeation.

Middle of bed trench / intrusion – Based on my research, about 14% of Sleep Number bed owners said there was a trench or middle bed intrusion between the two air chambers. This was especially noticeable when the two cameras had very different levels of firmness. This trench / intrusion could undermine the comfort of the bed and discourage intimate encounters between couples.