This Brooklyn Bedding mattress has gel beads that melt or solidify to keep you at an ideal sleeping temperature - here's why it's worth $1,699
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- Brooklyn Bedding is well-known for comfortable and affordable mattresses, pillows, and bedding, and was among the first to offer a "bed in a box."
- The Brooklyn Aurora is a new luxury hybrid mattress with innovative technology to keep your body at the ideal temperature for sleeping.
- A Twin starts at $999 and a King tops out at $2,124, so while it's not a budget-friendly option, if you sleep hot or want a high-quality mattress that will last years, the Aurora is well-worth the investment.
Brooklyn Bedding started its business in 1995, but it wasn't until 2008 that it started rolling its mattresses into boxes and selling them online.
As one of the first brands to sell beds in a box, the company has continuously come up with innovative ideas for mattresses, pillows, and bedding. It doesn't hurt either that it's able to keep products relatively affordable when compared to many brick and mortar retail companies thanks to its in-house manufacturing.
The Brooklyn Aurora is one of the newest offerings from Brooklyn Bedding's mattress line-up, and is already advertised as a best-selling model. Considered a luxury mattress, it comes with a lengthy list of features and boasts some pretty impressive patented technology to go along with.
A Twin starts at $999 and a King tops out at $2,124, so this is by no means the most budget friendly mattress the company offers. But after testing a $1,699 queen-sized mattress for myself, I can confidently say it is a worthwhile investment. It resulted in many nights of cool, comfortable, and uninterrupted sleep.
Delivery and first impressions
The Aurora comes in three different firmness levels - Soft, Medium, and Firm - as well as the full range of sizes - Twin, Twin XL, Full, Queen, King, and California King. I'm a stomach sleeper and my partner tends to sleep mostly on his back, so I decided to go with a queen-size firm mattress for additional support.
Though this is billed as a luxury mattress, there's no fancy white glove service, but at least there's free shipping across the continental United States.
The mattress was delivered to our doorstep tightly rolled in a box that we carried up the stairs to our bedroom. It wasn't too heavy and the set-up from there was a breeze. Once the mattress was out of the box and plastic wrapping was removed, the mattress immediately began to expand.
One thing I noticed right away was the lack of a strong odor that often comes with bed-in-a-box mattresses. Any "chemical" smell immediately wore off in less than 24 hours, which made for a relatively short off-gas period. We also allowed the mattress to sit for 24 hours to come to its full size.
At first glance, you can see the thought that went into the design. Nothing about it looked cheap, from the well-positioned handles on the sides that make it easier to move the mattress around to the quilted top, which features a unique honeycomb pattern. The surface of the mattress felt cool to the touch too, already showing the promise of a cool and comfortable night of sleep.
Construction
The thoughtful design extends beyond the exterior. The Aurora is a hybrid mattress, which means it has a mix of pocketed coils and foam for support and comfort. There are six layers in total. At the base is a layer of high density foam to support the individually pocketed coils, which provide responsiveness and help with motion isolation. These coils are covered with a transition layer of memory foam, and then a patented layer of foam called TitanFlex that adjusts to your body as you move.
The second to last (top?) layer is where the real cooling magic happens. This layer is infused with TitanCool, a phase change material that can melt into a liquid or solidify as it draws heat away from the body, helping your skin (and you) maintain an ideal sleeping temperature all night long. This material is paired with Brooklyn Bedding's patented CopperFlex material, which also helps create an antibacterial environment. All of this is topped with the honeycomb layer I mentioned above, which stays cool to the touch.
There are some high tech-sounding materials being thrown around here, but while innovative technology is being implemented in the construction of the mattress, harmful chemicals and materials are not, as the Aurora is CertiPUR-US Certified.
All these layers add up to a substantial mattress that is 13.5 inches thick. For context, the Amazon Basics Memory Foam Mattress is 8 inches, Allswell Hybrid is 10, and Helix Luxe Dusk is 14. Though the Aurora is on the thicker side, it can be used on a variety of different bed frames, including platforms and adjustable bases.
Read more: The best adjustable bed frames you can buy
Behind the cooling technology
Wondering how the cooling technology in the Aurora actually works? You're not alone.
Before testing this mattress, I was wondering the same. The secret lies in the phase change material, which is made with gel beads that liquify or solidify depending on your body temperature.
When your body runs hot, the beads draw away heat and provide a cooling effect to bring your temperature down to around 88 degrees, which is ideal for restful sleep, according to Brooklyn Bedding. If your temperature is already at or below 88 degrees, the beads solidify to help you maintain that temperature, preventing you from becoming too cold during the night.
While I admittedly didn't take a thermometer to bed with me, I can say that this technology isn't marketing fluff - it actually worked for me. I never overheated, and neither did my partner who tends to sleep much hotter than I do.
What does it feel like and who is it for?
I tested the firm version of the Aurora, and there is a definite feeling of resting on top of the mattress rather than sinking down into it. However, thanks to the pocketed coils and layers of foam, you won't feel like you're sleeping on a board either. The mattress is responsive and I never felt "stuck" in it, which can sometimes be the case with foam mattresses.
If you're looking for the traditional supportive feel of an innerspring mattress, but still want layers of comfort that lightly contour the body, a hybrid mattress like the Aurora is ideal. It is also important to remember that both height and weight can impact the feel of the mattress, so while the mattress felt very firm to me, my boyfriend would have described it as more of a medium-firm.
If you're a back or a stomach sleeper, the firm option may be right for you too. While it isn't unsuitable for side sleepers per se, if you do sleep exclusively on your side, you may want to consider the soft or medium to experience even more pressure point relief.
In my opinion, the firm option is great if you share your bed with a partner (or energetic cats or rowdy dogs) as the motion transfer was very minimal. When my boyfriend rolled over, I could barely feel any movement on my side of the bed. The edge support is also great, which I can also personally attest to. I often found myself closer to the edge than I would have liked when our cat adamantly wedged herself between us, but the support of the Aurora didn't waver.
If you sleep hot, this mattress is also a great option. After testing the Aurora for myself, I can say that all of that cooling technology does work. I never once overheated or had to kick the blankets off during the night, and even on the nights I forgot to turn our heat down before bed, I still stayed comfortable all night long.
With the description of this being a cooling mattress, I was also slightly worried that I'd end up being too cold at some point during the night, but that's the beauty of phase change material - it adapts to your body's temperature to help you stay at that ideal "Goldilocks" temperature of not too hot and not too cold.
What level of firmness should you get?
I tested the firm, Queen-sized model of the Brooklyn Aurora, which is ideal for stomach and back sleepers who like a firm feel or are on the heavier side.
However, this level of firmness may not be for everyone. If you're looking for support that offers slightly more give, I would advise going with the medium firmness, which is also great for combination sleepers. If you find yourself sleeping almost exclusively on your side, the soft firmness will provide you with a more cushioned feel that can help relieve pressure on the shoulders and hips.
What are your alternatives?
If you're looking for something more budget friendly, the AmazonBasics mattress or Allswell mattress will get the job done.
After testing each of those two personally, I would recommend the AmazonBasics for those who prefer a softer feel or are looking for a mattress that's entirely memory foam; the Allswell Mattress is a hybrid mattress, like the Aurora. If you're willing to forego the advanced cooling technology, but you want a firmer feeling mattress, you'll get a similar feel in terms of comfort with the Allswell.
Final thoughts
If you're looking for a high-quality hybrid mattress that'll keep you comfortable all night long, the Brooklyn Aurora is for you. The special attention paid to the construction of this mattress and innovative technology utilized in its design make it worth the higher price tag in my opinion.
Even though it's on the higher end of the price spectrum of bed-in-a-box mattresses - a queen comes in at $1,699 - it's still more affordable than many of the luxury brands found in brick and mortar mattress stores.
There are also a lot of logistical upsides too. Not only can you shop the full range of sizes online (Twin, Twin XL, Full, Queen, King, and California King), Brooklyn Bedding offers a 120-night sleep trial so you can be sure that it's truly the mattress for you before fully committing to it. And if you do decide to return it, you can do so at no extra cost.
The Aurora also comes with a 10-year warranty for extra peace of mind, and shipping is free on all mattress orders within the continental U.S.