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Finding the right one getting hot in bed can be difficult. Being too hot or too cold makes it harder to wind down and can wake you up prematurely. Since our mental and physical health depends on sleep, that is a problem. Sleep 8 has the answer. Eight Sleep Pod 4 is a temperature-controlled mattress cover that follows your body as you sleep, with a cabin that sprays cold or warm water onto the cover to help you stay in a restful position for longer.
After testing its predecessor, the Eight Sleep Pod 3 (7/10, WIRED Recommends), I was wary of the billionaire biohacking buzz, but he won me over. Apart from increased comfort, a very good sleep trackers they all told the same story: My wife and I slept longer and slept more soundly with REM and the Eight Sleep Pod than without. Eight Sleep Pod 4 brings some welcome updates, including increased comfort, quieter operation, and tap controls, so you don’t have to call your phone at night.
Photo: Simon Hill
Sadly, good sleep doesn’t come cheap. The Pod 4 Cover and Hub for a queen-sized bed costs $2,599, but you also need a one-year subscription to Autopilot for an additional $199. If you are already registered, you can transfer to a new Pod, but you will no longer be able to purchase an Eight Sleep Pod without obtaining an Autopilot registration. The UK Super King I tested costs £2,699, with a year of Autopilot at £199. It’s a real investment, but getting enough sleep can make a difference.
Hitting the Hay
The Eight Sleep Pod 4 Cover and Hub come in two large boxes. The mattress cover has rubber tubes inside and a soft, green, black top. They are designed to fit your mattress, and the tubes must be routed from the top to insert into the mattress. This unit is about the size of a desktop computer, with a front panel and a large 8 logo. This unit is the brains of the operation, and it cools or heats water and pumps it around the lid.
The setup with Pod 4 was similar but much faster than Pod 3. You pull the cylinder over the hub and pour water up to the fill line. The priming process is down to 10 minutes from several hours on the old model. You connect the hub to your Wi-Fi using a mobile app. The Pod 4’s screen is more pleasant than the Pod 3’s, and the environment is quieter. It did not break 30 decibels when measured. It makes a subtle hum, like a white noise sleep noise.
