Beautyrest Black Calista Review

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With so many new mattresses hitting the market, there certainly is no shortage of options. However, if you have a lower or higher than average BMI, it can become more difficult. That’s because most of the newer products being released are of medium firmness. Depending on how much weight you carry and how it’s distributed, finding the right mattress takes some effort.

If you sleep on your back or carry a lot of weight and need something super supportive, today we’re taking a look at a mattress that’s part of the Simmons Beautyrest Black collection. The Calista extra firm mattress offers excellent support and the right feel for those who struggle with excessive sinkage.

Its close attention-to-detail when it comes to aspects like heat transfer and edge support make it a great option to consider for hot sleepers and those who suffer from mobility issues. If this sounds like you, you’re going to want to stick around. We have picked this mattress apart and undergone various methods of testing to see if it makes the cut, so let’s take a look!

Video Review

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About Simmons

Simmons has been in the business for nearly a century and a half. In 1870, a businessman and former cheese box manufacturer from Wisconsin named Zalmon Simmons made it his mission to build a more comfortable mattress and established Simmons Bedding Company.

Over the years, Simmons has introduced multiple sleep innovations to the market. These include:

• Pocketed coils
• Queen and King size beds
• Electric blanket
• No-flip mattress

After about 30 years in the business, the first wrapped coil spring was introduced. While consumers did find them comfortable, making them by hand increased costs, and they were originally only found on luxury liners like the Titanic. It was Simmons that improved the production process and made the pocketed coil available to the general public.

Today, Simmons has 16 manufacturing plants across the United States in which they not only design quality mattresses but also test, optimize, and research. They’re able to draw on more than 140 years of manufacturing innovation. In a nutshell, when experience counts, Simmons is a top contender.

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Beautyrest Black Calista Layer Lineup

Let’s begin by taking a layer-by-layer look at this product…

The SurfaceCool Cover

It starts off with the soft, aesthetically-appealing cover. It’s made of SurfaceCool Fiber that’s designed to move heat away from the body. This is achieved partly due to the use of Tencel fibers. This eco-friendly technology sleeps cooler than linen.

The SurfaceCool Fiber is oriented vertically, and this promotes air flow. Since the cover is closest to the body, I like that Simmons included more than one breathability feature. We’ll get to our heat transfer testing here in a minute.

Four-Part Comfort Zone

Moving beneath the cover, we find the comfort zone. It’s here where conforming back support is enhanced and contour is achieved. It’s composed of:

• ¾” GelTouch® Foam for even distribution of gel throughout the foam
• GelTouch® Foam works with the next three layers to offer adequate contour on a firm product. This can be challenging, but Simmons did a great job balancing comfort and support in this extra firm mattress.
• 1” Comfort Foam creates a pillow top comfort level using a durable polyfoam
• 1” Energy Foam
• ½” Black Ice Micro Diamond Memory Foam promotes heat transfer using micro diamonds in the foam to conduct heat away from the surface

Italian-sourced Support

Finally, we move into the main support section. This is where the firmness kicks in, and it makes up 74% of the mattress. It’s made of-of the following two layers:

• Energy Foam sourced in Italy
  • Reacts to all different types of pressure to provide a custom feel

• • Advanced Pocketed Coil™ Technology with triple wrapping to offer strength and durability
    • Patented triple-stranded coils help deliver their best conforming back support and pressure relief
    • The total mattress thickness is 12 ½ inches.

Calista Mattress Performance

You’re probably wondering what this layer lineup feels like. If you like the float-on-top feeling, you’re going to love this product. On the other hand, if you aren’t a big fan of a firm sleep surface, you might fare better with something else.

If you don’t carry much weight, you’re probably going to have issues engaging with the various comfort layers. In your case, I think the Simmons Beautyrest Silver Plush is going to be a better fit.

However, if you do have a higher BMI, I think you’ll be pleased with the incredible amount of support you get with this product. If you have back problems, the feel can also help you reduce strain on your muscles since the bones absorb most of the force.

You might be interested: Best Simmons Beautyrest Mattress Reviews

Firmness & Sinkage Expectations

We’ve pretty well established this is a firm mattress, but let’s take a more detailed look at what you can expect.

In the comfort zone, we find foams that feature low indentation load deflections. This means they are pretty plush. I know what you’re thinking… this is a firm mattress, right? Keep in mind the comfort zone only makes up around a quarter of the mattress. The comfort layers are there to provide the contour we need for proper comfort and spinal alignment.

The Firmness is in the Coils

I think Simmons did a great job in balancing support and contour in the creation of a firm mattress. The majority of the firmness is found in the coil unit. The coil gauge in this unit is low, and this means the coils are wound tighter, thus making for a firmer mattress.This coil unit does incorporate zoning. This means the coils are slightly plusher in the middle of the mattress. This allows the compensation needed in the heavier hip area to avoid pressure points. Let’s take a peek at what this looks like.

On a standard medium product, I sink in 6 ½ inches when I stand upright on it. Here’s the sinkage I get on the Calista mattress:

• • • • • Top and bottom- 5 inches
        • Middle- 5 ½ inches

This deeper sinkage in the middle represents the zoning we talked about. Overall, this mattress is about 20% firmer than a standard medium.

Motion Isolation Performance

Traditional continuous coil innersprings were notorious for excessive motion transfer. That’s why Simmons, always the innovator, developed the first Pocketed Coil in 1925. Since

a continuous coil is just what it sounds like… a coil that continues throughout your mattress, motion on one side will often carry over to the other side.

When the coils are broken up into smaller parts and wrapped, this goes a long way in reducing motion transfer. The additional use of various foams further aids in motion isolation. If you have a sleep partner and appreciate springy bounce that really contributes to mobility, this is a solution that will keep you from disturbing one another when you move or get in and out of bed.

Heat Transfer Performance

We’ve seen the many steps Simmons took to keep this mattress sleeping cool including:

• • • SurfaceCool Fiber in the cover
    • Naturally-breathable innerspring unit
    • Micro-diamonds in the memory foam
    • Naturally-breathable innerspring unit

I had high expectations when I performed my heat transfer testing. After lying on this mattress for 30 minutes in a controlled temperature, I monitored the cooldown process. This takes, on average, about 10 minutes. In this case, it took 9 ½, so the multiple efforts to keep it sleeping cool paid off. If you sleep hot, this could be a great solution.

Edge Support

Firm products, especially those containing innerprings, typically perform very well in terms of edge support. Throw in a 360 degree, 3-inch, Foam Encased Edge Support System, and you’ve got a highly supportive edge.

You can see how well it keeps me supported both sitting and lying on the edge. This can be especially helpful if you carry a lot of weight or have difficulty getting in and out of bed. It can also be a plus for sleep partners since it essentially extends your sleep surface.

Durability Expectations: Will It Last?

If this sounds good so far, let’s take a look at longevity expectations. You can rest assured that this product is made in the USA, and Simmons has a Sleep Technology and Advanced Research facility in Atlanta where they perform rigorous durability testing. Just to name a couple of methods:

• • • Cornell Test mimics 10 years of serious wear and tear by applying 100 forceful blows per minute for two days straight.
    • The transportation test sees how well the mattress will travel under the worst possible conditions.

The Comfort Foam features a high density, and this indicates it should last. Since this is the most significant layer in the very top of the lineup where most wear and tear takes place, deep indentation development is less likely.

In the coil unit, we want to look at the coil count. In a queen mattress, 800 is indicative of good durability, and the Beautyrest Black Calista contains 850. It’s also triple-wrapped high carbon steel, further promoting a product that should last.

Maintenance, Protection, Care, & Warranty

Finding a sleep surface capable of offering the firmness needed by those with a high BMI or preference for firmness can be difficult. I appreciate the experience Simmons has in the industry, and they’ve proven their ingenuity throughout the years with multiple new innovations that have become industry standards.

Since medium firmness is accommodating for the largest number of shoppers, most newer companies want to procure that demographic early on. This means people who like it firm often have to rely on more traditional companies that have had the time to develop more specific sleep solutions. If you think the Beautyrest Black Calista could be the right mattress for you, check out the FAQs for more details.

Beautyrest Black Calista Reviews & Feedback

There are hundreds of mattress companies to choose from with many more popping up all the time since the bed-in-a-box business model has taken the Internet by storm. If you’re looking for experience, Simmons is a great option. They are famous for their continual innovation, and I think this is a great option to consider for anyone who wants a luxury feel at an affordable cost.

To make sure you get a well-rounded idea of what to expect, I took some time to look around online to see what other people have to say about this product. See what I found in the Pros & Cons.

Who We Recommend the Calista Mattress For

The handles on the sides are helpful when it comes to moving your mattress, but, thanks to Simmons’s no flip, no rotate design, you shouldn’t have to move it that often. Foams used are CertiPUR-US certified, and you’re protected against manufacturer-related issues with a 10 Year Limited Warranty. I think this could be the right mattress if you:

• • • Carry a lot of weight
    • Sleep on your back or stomach
    • Have mobility issues
    • Sleep hot

Our Final Verdict

I appreciate the measures Simmons takes to incorporate the use of luxury materials that are also scientifically proven to deliver high-quality sleep.

There is no unboxing involved with this product since you get to enjoy white glove delivery. Your transportation team will get you all set up and remove the trash. If you’re sensitive to offgassing, it helps that this mattress is never compressed and vacuum sealed shut.

Overall, I found this to be a great option to consider for those of you who just aren’t built for a standard medium and need the specific features to help keep you well supported.

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Calista Extra Firm Specs Sheet

Material	Thickness	ILD	Density	Coil Count
GelTouch® Foam	¾ inches	n/a	n/a	n/a
Comfort Foam	1 inch	n/a	n/a	n/a
Energy Foam	1 inch	n/a	n/a	n/a
Micro-Diamond Memory Foam	½ inch	n/a	n/a	n/a
Energy Foam	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
Advanced Pocketed Coils™	n/a	n/a	n/a	850