Comparison
Founder of GoodBed, Leading Mattress Expert
Note: This is not a review. This is our plain-English explanation and overview of the Tempur-Ergo Adjustable Bed Base from Tempur-Pedic.
If you’d prefer to watch rather than read, watch our Tempur-Ergo Adjustable Base Overview video
Tempur-Ergo Adjustable Bases: Common Features
Here at GoodBed, we're asked more and more frequently about adjustable bases, which got their start as a home version of an adjustable hospital bed. Now, of course, they look nothing like a piece of clinical equipment.
An adjustable base is an easy way to add functionality and comfort to an existing mattress. For more on adjustable bases in general, check out our Adjustable Base Buyer's Guide.
Tempur-Pedic makes four adjustable bases. There's a very basic model called the Ease Power Base that we are not discussing here as it's not part of the Ergo line. The Ease is as basic as they come, with just head up/down, foot up/down and that's about it.
The Ergo models are much fully featured, with some less common features even on the least expensive model. Here's a look at what they have in common, then we'll take a peak at each model on its own. The three are the Ergo, the Ergo Smart, and the Ergo Pro Smart.
Massage Features
All three include massage features. The Ergo and Ergo Smart have a motor tucked up inside the bottom of the base which provides vibration. (When we talk about massage features on adjustable bases, it's not massage like you might get in a spa. Rather, it's a vibration, sometimes in patterns, that provides a relaxing feeling rather than some kind of deep-tissue massage.)
The top of the line model, the Ergo Pro Smart, also has a massage function, but it accomplishes that in a completely different way. Rather than vibration motors, the Pro Smart includes four subwoofers - yes, the music type of subwoofers - in the base, two at the head and two at the foot. When you operate these either with the included programs or with your own music, they vibrate with the music or sounds you are playing. It's really cool, and in our video above, we spend a lot of time with this feature if it interests you.
Lumbar Support
All three bases have a very interesting lumbar support feature. There's a section in the middle of the bed, right under what would be your lower back, that can be raised and lowered with the remote, all the way up to six inches. The bar pushes up against your mattress, pushing it up into the small of your back to whatever degree is comfortable for you.
We found this to be a unique and useful feature that really can be felt. And while we're not sure if we'd use this fully extended over the course of an entire night, we could see it working well as a way of creating a gentle stretch to help relieve low back pain. Here is a look at how it looks when fully extended under a mattress.
Remote and App
The remote controls for all three are wireless and backlit, with clearly laid out buttons. The central circular area houses most of the elevation controls, and is pretty much the same for all three.
Additional buttons control massage features, and a "flat" button that takes everything back to (you guessed it) flat. The zero-G setting is a preset that elevates the head and foot slightly to simulate a pressure-relieving posture similar to leaning back in a reclining chair.
All also have an anti-snore feature, which elevates the head about 12 degrees, meant to alleviate snoring. Even better, if you enable this feature, the bed can sense snoring and activate the anti-snoring feature automatically.
There's also a button for under-bed lighting, helpful if you need to find your way across the room and don't want to turn on a light.
Lastly, all remotes feature at least one button that can be customized, so if there is a particular head/foot elevation combination that you enjoy, you can "set" it and assign it to the button, making it easy to return to that favorite position anytime you like.
It's worth noting that all of the standard sizes come with a single remote, and you can't pair two remotes with the same base. If you purchase one of the split configurations, you'll get two remotes, so you can operate each side separately.
In addition to the remotes, all three Tempur-Ergo bases can also be used with an optional mobile app, which expands features further. The app has sleep tracking and data features, and for the top model, the Ergo Pro Smart, the app has a bunch of music settings and features that pair with that model's speaker system.
The bases are also compatible with Amazon Alexa, and can be controlled by voice once set up.
Assembly and Furniture
One really nice aspect of the Tempur-Ergo series is that they come nearly fully assembled. Even the wiring is set up and ready to go, and the remotes are already paired with the bed. It's about as close to plug-and-play as you get.
The height of the legs is adjustable, so you can decide how high you want the base to sit off the ground.
The mechanical parts and motors all fit underneath and inside the frame, so nothing hangs down under the adjustable bed -- that's handy if you want to drop the base on top of a bed frame or platform bed, or even use it on the floor. With no parts hanging down under the frame, doing so won't hamper operation at all.
Another nice feature is USB ports; there are two on each side of the base, nested just inside the frame. That allows you to plug your phone charger right into the base.
All Tempur-Pedic power bases support a total weight capacity of up to 650 pounds each (Twin, Twin Long, Double, Queen, and Split/Dual CA King bases), which would include the weight of your mattress.
Tempur-Ergo and Ergo Smart
The base model, the Tempur-Ergo Power Base, has all of the basic features discussed above. It has a simple massage feature ,with two speeds. We also noted that the motors are pretty quiet. The Ergo Smart adds on to those features pretty significantly.
The massage features on the Ergo Smart are greatly expanded. You get two zones, meaning you can choose head or foot vibration, or both. You also get three patterns rather than just straightforward vibration. There is a back-and-forth patter, a pulse pattern, and a wave pattern that alternates and varies the vibrations in different ways. On top of that, there are multiple intensity levels for all of the cycles.
As you might expect, the remote has more buttons to control all those extra massage features. It also has an extra preset in addition to anti-snore and zero-G, a TV preset. You can choose to override that preset with your own settings, and you get an additional fully customizable button as well.
Tempur-Ergo Pro Smart
The Pro Smart version of the Tempur-Pedic adjustable base is one of the most interesting - and fun - adjustable bases we have tested. Instead of motors to power the massage features, the Pro Smart instead uses four subwoofers and a regular speaker at the head of the bed.
If you have ever stood next to a subwoofer at a concert, or had one in your home theater setup, you know that subwoofers actually vibrate with the bass sounds they produce. The Pro Smart uses this to its advantage, so instead of a randomly vibrating motor, you get vibrations that happen along with the music or sounds you are playing.
You can play any sound you want through your phone or through the app, and the remote also has some settings of its own. You can choose from several 'relaxation' or white-noise type of sounds in addition to rhythmic patterns, and of course you can also choose to play actual music through your bed. The subwoofers will register the bass sounds while a regular speaker at the head of the play will play the rest of the music.
You can use the app to raise the levels and intensity of the subwoofers. This is a really neat feature, and we enjoyed playing around it with a lot!
Delivery, Returns, & Warranty
- Free white-glove delivery
The Tempur-pedic Ergo bases all come with free delivery and set up -- a good thing since these bases would not be easy to manage on your own.
It is worth noting that the adjustable base does not come with a trial period, and cannot be returned. This is fairly standard with adjustable bases. There is a 25-year limited warranty, with the first three years covering parts and labor. After that, just parts are covered.
