This Mattress Cover Can Heat, Cool and Track Your Sleep
Eight Sleep is now selling the Pod 6, a smart mattress cover that heats, cools and tracks sleep. It is not a mattress itself. It uses a small hub and a cover that fits over your current mattress, which stays in place. Engadget
The company says the Pod 6 models were rebuilt from the ground up. It calls this its most significant hardware launch to date.
The hub fits under most bed frames. It pumps warm or cool water through the included cover. Eight Sleep says temperature changes are about 20 percent faster than before.
Each side of the bed can be set from 12°C to 43°C without affecting the other side. One Pod 6 Hub powers both sleepers. The company calls the Pod 6 the smallest, most powerful Pod yet. It says the new thermal engine brings faster relief from hot flashes, night sweats, or chills. The system works with any mattress.
The Pod 6 has 18 body sensors, up from 2 in the Pod 5. The sensors track heart rate, breath rate, heart rate variability (small changes in time between heartbeats), snoring, and sleep stages. You do not need to wear a tracker. You see the results in the company's app.
The cover heats, cools, tracks, and responds on both sides through those built-in sensors. It can tell apart two people sleeping close together. It can also tell apart a person and a pet on the bed.
An automatic mode called Autopilot controls the system. Think of it like a thermostat for the bed. It changes the temperature based on sleep stage and room temperature. Eight Sleep says the app can connect to fitness apps and give health insights. The company says the Pod 6 cuts down on snoring. It also says the system helps people fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer.
Pricing depends on size and zone setup. The Solo model is for one sleeper and does not include a dual-zone temperature system. Solo starts at $1,999. Mashable Standard starts at $2,699. In Standard, Full is $2,699 and Queen is $2,899, up to $3,000 depending on mattress size. In the EU, pricing starts at €2,199, with Solo sizes for an EU Single or for one side of an EU Super King.
Every Pod 6 needs an Autopilot plan costing $17 to $25 per month. The plan is required, not optional.
In my view, the extra sensors are what make the new tracking claims possible. With more points of contact across the bed, the system can sort out mixed signals from two people, or from a person and a pet, rather than just sensing movement.
The broader context here is automatic adjustment. The bed senses and then heats or cools in response, instead of staying at one setting all night. If that works well in normal bedrooms with partners, pets, and different mattresses, the payoff over time is plain, fewer wakeups from heat or cold and useful heart and breathing data without wearing anything to bed.
