Personal comfort is the renewed review: have it your way

With flexible head options, only the upper parts of the bed have an independent range of motion. The bed base is still attached on both sides. With split options, both the head and foot of the bed can move independently. Both options make great sense for couples who want to choose their individual firmness levels and the angle at which they sleep or rest. In the spirit of understanding the full range of offerings for couples (and because I had never experienced the flex-head option before), I ended up going with the flex-head king.

I don’t think I would do it again, as I’ve found that I prefer a more flexible head in waking hours than when sleeping. I used my side to sit and read while my husband slept. However, if I wanted to put my feet in zero gravity and he wanted everything to be level, we had to be on the same page, as the bottom of the bed was still attached. Having the split at the top of the bed took some getting used to, because it was very easy to roll over and feel like we were diving headfirst into the chasm. Not to mention, with the flexible head, you’ll need special bedsheets to accommodate the slit in the mattress. Making this bed will take practice, as it nearly moved me to tears several times, as each fitted part wrestled over the separate top sides. For this reason, I recommend couples stick with full split sizes if they want a large size.

Back it up

Photo: Julia Forbes

People often get confused when it comes to smart beds, as they imagine the entire setup with an adjustable base. The Smart Mattress and Smart Base are actually two separate functions that are meant to be used together. So, let’s get this straight: The range of motion you see with smart beds can only be achieved with an adjustable base. Because the adjustable bases can be controlled via remotes and apps, they’re part of the smart bed experience. However, believe it or not, it’s not included with your purchase — so if you fancy your new smart bed being able to adjust firmness, move up and down, and act as your personal massager, you’ll only be able to achieve that with an adjustable base.

ScreenshotPersonal Comfort App via Julia Forbes

I chose to test Rejuvenate with Personal Comfort’s Power-Flex 4 base, which is the most feature-rich base the brand offers. You don’t have to purchase an adjustable base from Personal Comfort, but the brand often offers bundle promotions. The Power-Flex 4 features standard head and foot motion, zero gravity, anti-snoring head lift, head tilt to adjust the angle of your pillow, three massage settings, underbed lighting, and enhanced lumbar support. The massage was something that caught my attention, because it’s the epitome of luxurious enhancement in my book. Unfortunately, I didn’t end up taking care of her. These three settings caused the entire bed to vibrate at increasingly powerful speeds. It felt more like a very large vibrating pad than a gentle vibrator for sleep. The under-bed lights were convenient, and the remote control had a built-in flashlight. Make sure you get the right remote control, as the base and mattress have different characteristics. Each side has its own set of remotes, which means you can have a total of four if you don’t sync both sides to one set.

Personal Comfort can help you cut through all the chaos and fumbling in the dark. My husband and I downloaded the app on each of our devices so we could set up our sides of the bed — he had no problems setting it up, but my side was a little more complicated, as the app seemed to confuse which sleeper was on which side. Even if I chalk this up to possible user error, the app’s UI is simple and easy to use but much less flashy than other smart beds I’ve come across. This is partly because this smart bed is not equipped to track your sleep data. Allows you to adjust the stiffness and angle of the adjustable base and enable massage features if you wish. But many of the options in the left drop-down menu are hyperlinked articles that take you away from the app, such as the user guide and troubleshooting pages

Ready, set, go

One of the big selling points of Personal Comfort as a brand is affordability, which of course ultimately depends on whether or not you get a base with Rejuvenation. However, comparing apples to apples with a competitor I tested, the Sleep Number P6, FlexFit 3 base, Personal Comfort, and Power-Flex 4 base were actually about $1,400 more expensive. Personal Comfort is currently running a promotion where you can get a free BedJet 3 cooling system with your purchase. You also get a specialty size option for the flex head with Rejuvenate, including a queen size. I haven’t seen that anywhere else.

Photo: Julia Forbes

Would I buy Rejuvenate if I had the choice? If I’m in the market for a good smart bed and don’t need sleep tracking, sure. But I will participate in the framework first and the rank second. The more time I spend testing smart beds, the more I realize that they’re a complete package with adjustable frames and smart mattresses — and to get the full experience, you really need both. I also find that smart mattresses can also have the feel (no pun intended) of an inflatable mattress sometimes, which makes me yearn for something with a more traditional feel. The Rejuvenate pulls this up well, feeling like a traditional memory foam mattress with the option to increase your firmness level. However, as I said, it won’t be as firm as a really firm traditional mattress.

So, if you want a softer foam bed without any sleep tracking, Rejuvenate will make sense. But with the smart bed being a comprehensive approach to sleep tracking, flexibility when it comes to firmness, and luxury you can’t achieve with a regular mattress (e.g., weightlessness in zero gravity mode), this smart bed isn’t quite there.