Hi Heidi -- Yes, I'd say the Starling is a true "medium-firm" (ie, a 4 out of 9 on our softness spectrum). But this isn't as straightforward a question as it might seem, and varies based on which side is up. So I'd definitely recommend watching our nuanced discussion of softness at 5:51 for the full explanation, if you haven't already. In terms of how it's labeled on Nest's website, as a very general comment (that has nothing to do with Nest specifically), softness classifications that come from manufacturers are really hard to rely on for three reasons: 1) Their job is to know their own products, not their competitors' products. And certainly not to know all products across the entire market. So in effect, each brand operates on their own softness spectrum. 2) At the end of the day, a brand is trying to sell its products. So if they think a product will sell better as a "Medium," they'll call it a Medium. If they think it will sell better as a "Firm," they'll call it a Firm. This is why by far the most common thing for a manufacturer to say about their product is that it's just a little firmer than medium -- they think this will give it the greatest appeal to the greatest number of people. 3) No brands distinguish between "softness" and "cushioning depth." A fun fact is that GoodBed actually invented this distinction, and we're still the only ones who are able to consistently measure it. When we started assessing mattresses, we found that what most brands were measuring when they talked about softness was different than what we (or our readers) considered to be softness. What the brands were measuring (and mostly still do) -- how deeply you sink into a mattress -- is wrapped into what we now call "cushioning depth." But in some cases (especially with memory foam), this can be very different from how much actual plushness you experience on the mattress, which is what we call "softness." So in general, unless we don't have an assessment of a given mattress, I wouldn't put much stake in what a manufacturer says about it on their website. I hope that's helpful.
@@goodbed I appreciate your detail in your responses. The bed in a box is still kind of off putting to me but I remember back in the day Nest had excellent service. I may give them a call and discuss. Ironically I have switched sides of the bed and my contour elite has pretty good support on that side so I seem to have bought myself a little bit of time. Thinking back all the years I have had it, even through moves I always slept on the same side. I did find rotating a mattress on an adjustable base is pointless. Both sides break in equally in the same places. But I digress …I’ll keep you posted
Ha I ask the tough questions. Loom and leaf firm vs starling? Is starling a true med firm? It’s labeled medium on the site
Hi Heidi --
Yes, I'd say the Starling is a true "medium-firm" (ie, a 4 out of 9 on our softness spectrum). But this isn't as straightforward a question as it might seem, and varies based on which side is up. So I'd definitely recommend watching our nuanced discussion of softness at 5:51 for the full explanation, if you haven't already.
In terms of how it's labeled on Nest's website, as a very general comment (that has nothing to do with Nest specifically), softness classifications that come from manufacturers are really hard to rely on for three reasons:
1) Their job is to know their own products, not their competitors' products. And certainly not to know all products across the entire market. So in effect, each brand operates on their own softness spectrum.
2) At the end of the day, a brand is trying to sell its products. So if they think a product will sell better as a "Medium," they'll call it a Medium. If they think it will sell better as a "Firm," they'll call it a Firm. This is why by far the most common thing for a manufacturer to say about their product is that it's just a little firmer than medium -- they think this will give it the greatest appeal to the greatest number of people.
3) No brands distinguish between "softness" and "cushioning depth." A fun fact is that GoodBed actually invented this distinction, and we're still the only ones who are able to consistently measure it. When we started assessing mattresses, we found that what most brands were measuring when they talked about softness was different than what we (or our readers) considered to be softness. What the brands were measuring (and mostly still do) -- how deeply you sink into a mattress -- is wrapped into what we now call "cushioning depth." But in some cases (especially with memory foam), this can be very different from how much actual plushness you experience on the mattress, which is what we call "softness."
So in general, unless we don't have an assessment of a given mattress, I wouldn't put much stake in what a manufacturer says about it on their website.
I hope that's helpful.
@@goodbed I appreciate your detail in your responses. The bed in a box is still kind of off putting to me but I remember back in the day Nest had excellent service. I may give them a call and discuss. Ironically I have switched sides of the bed and my contour elite has pretty good support on that side so I seem to have bought myself a little bit of time. Thinking back all the years I have had it, even through moves I always slept on the same side. I did find rotating a mattress on an adjustable base is pointless. Both sides break in equally in the same places. But I digress …I’ll keep you posted