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It's no secret that the sleep world is full of bullshit. Whether it be greens powders, magic sprays or herbal teas, there's an endless list of false promises that prey on the sleep-deprived of us out there. Mattress brands are no exception. As someone who hunts for the best mattress for a living, I'm more than familiar with the heartbreak that can follow the first hint of a good night's sleep. “Our coolest mattress yet”? All too often, you'll find me overheating at 3AM for the third night running.
So my scepticism was in full flow when Simba's Essential Hybrid arrived on my doorstep a few months ago. It was a dark February day, I wasn't particularly thrilled at the idea of giving another new mattress a test given I had just entered a training block for the London Marathon. If ever there'd be a challenge for a mattress – even a new model made by one of GQ's best-rated brands – it would be helping me sleep amid sore muscles, persistent stress and the fact I was constantly switching between extreme bodily fatigue and pure adrenaline.
Despite my being a walking recipe for bad sleep, the Simba proved to be a champion of Olympic proportions. Better still, as one of the most affordable and best hybrid mattresses available (as well as a decent mattress for back pain), it's incredibly good value as well; all the more so if you pick it up during the best Black Friday mattress sales of the year.
Ditch those price tags
So, what’s going on here? Having tested up to 20 mattresses in the past few years only to discover a £500 model is one of my favourites, I was also pretty astonished. If there’s one thing I’ve learned in my time on the mattress beat, it is that the price tag is not always a measure of what you’re getting. It all comes down to the design, and how it feels. Thankfully, the best cheap mattress may also be one of the best overall.
As I mentioned, Simba’s Hybrid Essential is actually one of Simba's most budget-friendly designs. Coming in at just £579 for a single bed size, it's a long way off the £2,000 price of the most luxurious Simba Hybrid Ultra. As you climb the ladder of Simba mattresses, each one tends to incorporate a few extra springs, maybe a wool layer, and some additional cooling technology, but all of these extra accoutrements aren't necessarily essential. Having tried and tested the entire Simba range, this ‘Essential’ offers more than enough to give you a good sleep.
The Essentials
So what does Simba think are the most fundamental components of a mattress? Here, you have 1,000 of its Aerocoil springs to help with spinal alignment and provide you with support. The Simba Original, in comparison, has 2,500, with the Ultra coming in at a whopping 8,500 springs. If you really struggle with back pain or are consistently woken up by a heavier partner who moves around a lot, it might be worth the extra investment. For the rest of us, 1,000 springs should do just fine.
The number of layers is the other telling factor. The Essential has just four: a foam base that incorporates five different support zones, the aforementioned Aerocoil springs, a graphite-infused Simbatex foam layer and a breathable, zip-off cover that sits on the top. By Simba’s terms, this is quite a small number (the Ultra boasts 13 layers), but it's broadly on par with the mattress industry at large.
So how does that all feel to sleep on? Considering we slept on this mattress throughout the entirety of our London Marathon training block, and if some exceptionally sore muscles and an adrenaline-filled nervous system managed to find some comfort across 300 miles of running, we’d wager that’s a sign this mattress has got it down. Those who need a tiny bit of extra comfort, cushioning or support down the line can always freshen things up with the Simba Mattress Topper, one of our favourite items ever to have landed on our doorstep.
So, the Essential is enough?
Many of us simply aren’t going to turn our bedrooms into five-star hotels when we can get a decent night’s sleep at a much more affordable price. As such, the Simba Essential is a real winner. In all honesty, we’ve yet to notice a flaw in this mattress that isn’t just the absence of an extra indulgence. Of course, the Ultra is a better product, but not by that much. The Essential is comfortable, easier to fit sheets on thanks to its lower height, and hopefully, it’ll get me across that marathon finish line. It might be the bottom of Simba’s price ladder, but it’s currently up near the top of ours when it comes to value for money.
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