Some have characterized shopping for a mattress to be like buying a car but worse.

We have cut through all of the fancy marketing, confusing names and descriptions and price manipulations to come up with a simple, effective, safe way to purchase a mattress for those so inclined to follow this procedure.

The first step is to watch for a great sale at a store that you trust. One example: SEARS.

The second step is to lay on every mattress in your price range and then choose the cheapest.

Then tell the sales person to give you his or her best price so that you don’t have to go to their competitors. After receiving that price, there is no harm in asking for a further discount to “seal the deal.”

Be sure to ask about free delivery and removal of your current bed. This should all be pretty straightforward unless you have a water bed you wish to get rid of, which will require you most likely to have to deal with on your own.

If you are turned on to fancy sounding names for your bed, this program could still work for you. We were able to find a well-known name brand with all kinds of bells and whistles at approximately 50% less than normal.

Sleep well.

Ready to buy a high definition TV?  Start looking into it and you’ll see that it is quite complex.  Should you buy a plasma?  LCD?  DLP?  And within each type, what model? What size?  And why does size matter?  The list of questions go on and on.

So we have come up with a quick and easy strategy for you.

First, an excellent, brief, overview can be found at the Crutchfield website.  Then, use the Web to find ratings on all particular TV models that interest you and fall in your price range.  Go to different websites that offer customer reviews as well. 

Once you have narrowed down which models you are interested in, check around your area and on the Internet for the best deal. Then head out to a place like Circuit City to see the actual models. Find the TV you want, find the best price available and then head to Best Buy.  They will match any legitimate competition price.

Best Buy has a reasonable price for installation which you very much should consider given that some tuning and special installation (especially if it is going to be wall mounted) may be required.

You may also use this strategy for furniture to support your new TV if you are not going to have it wall mounted.

After devising this strategy, we tested it.  We were able to procure a top-notch Samsung 61″ DLP (with matching support furniture) and a 26″ Insignia HDTV at very pleasing prices.  And by the way, through our research we found that the insignia brand is Best Buy’s brand but it is apparently made by LG. So here, you are getting a well-respected electronics namebrand television — LG at a Best Buy bargain price.

Lastly, make sure to “pick the brains” of all the sales personnel.  Be sure to ask them about everything that you need to get up and running.

Quick and easy, good price, high definition TV.  There you go!

Great steak? Consistently?  Reasonably priced for a top tier steakhouse?  Available nationwide?

Flemings

That’s about as succinct as we can get! 

It used to be relatively simple for a parent to judge if his or her teenager was smoking marijuana.  Even if eyedrops were used to remove the redness, and behavior was well controlled, the smell of marijuana would give it away.  Not anymore.

Quietly, across the country a new approach to using marijuana is taking place by vaporizing it instead of smoking it.  Digital vaporizers render the marijuana odorless and more powerful.  These machines can cost hundreds of dollars but now, vapor type pipes are available and these are easily portable and $50 or less.

Advocates of vaporizing marijuana argue that it is less harmful because it is not being smoked but vaporized instead. Only long-term scientific research will tell us what beneficial and what harmful effects vaporized marijuana provides.

In the meantime, the job of being a teenage parent has become tougher

No speakers, no bulky pieces of equipment connected through wires, yet phenomenal sounding music for the average ear.  That is what today’s technology provides us with.

Here at ResearchReporterBlog, we investigated the question: if we only had one device to listen to music from with limited space, what would it be?  Our investigation resulted in two recommendations: the Bose Wave Music System and the iPod Shuffle.

The Bose Wave Music System, the size of a large music alarm clock, can fill the room with deceptively impressive sounds one would expect from a multi-equipment setup.  And to get really small, just a bit above the size of a postage stamp but a tad or so thicker, the iPod Shuffle delivers exceptional sound considering the size of the delivery system.

For these reasons, we salute the technological advancements of modern man and highly recommend these two devices. 

There are many eye masks available but one is hard-pressed to find an eye mask aimed at not only covering your eyes for sleep, but muffling sounds upon your ears as well. ResearchReporterBlog has discovered the Sleepmaster — an eye mask that wraps around the head with sound muffling material.

Sleepmaster is a very comfortable eye mask that definitely does its job of blocking out light.  However, the designers of this product recognized that their eye mask does not block out all sounds.  As such, they include a pair of earplugs for those who want to, “completely” block out sound.

ResearchReporterBlog can only give this eye mask a positive review but notes that even with the earplugs included, our research was unable to duplicate the achievement of completely blocking out sound.

When it comes to consumer noise reduction headphones, Bose remains the king with its Quiet Comfort line. At $299 and $349 apiece, the Quiet Comfort 2 and Quiet Comfort 3 are viewed seriously, in terms of which one to purchase.

In deciding between these two headphone sets, it is important to differentiate between passive noise reduction and active noise cancellation.

Examples of passive noise reduction include: covering one’s ears with one’s hands, or closing the door to a noisy room.

Active noise cancellation involves electronics providing a sensor that detects particular sounds and then the electronics emits a sound the exact opposite of what it has detected — referred to as anti-noise. By emitting the exact opposite sound, it actively cancels out the noise. Active noise cancellation works best on low frequency sounds like vibratory noise or ambient noise.

With this in mind, there are several differences between the two types of Bose headsets. Price is one. A second difference is that the Quiet Comfort 2 ear cups fit over the ear, whereas the Quiet Comfort 3 ear cups fit directly on the ear. But most important, the Quiet Comfort 3 provides better active noise cancellation.

All things being equal, if you wish to reduce low frequency noise, then the Quiet Comfort 3 is likely the hands down winner.

If reducing low frequency noise is not a major concern, either headphone set will do — provided the fit of the ear cups does not make a difference.

When you are flying on an airplane, and turn on either Quiet Comfort headset, you will notice a definite drop in the noise level your ears are being exposed to.

But Bose will need to stay on its toes. The Sennheiser PXC 450 poses a true threat to the Bose active noise cancellation headset dominance.

How many times have you seen commercials for The Total Gym? Now, there is a much cheaper competitor out there that puts out a pretty good product: Weider Total BodyWorks 5000.

Our evaluation reveals that both products are very good.  Aside from price, there is one other aspect that seems to differentiate the two: installation and usage instructions.  Not every Weider Total Bodyworks 5000 is problematic in this area, but if you do purchase this product and find yourself having difficulty with installation, just hop onto a forum online to find your answer.

Both The Total Gym, and the Weider Total Bodyworks 5000 are recommended.  You need to determine for yourself what level of financial investment you wish to make in comparison to what level of potential installation and/or usage frustration that may or may not emerge with the less expensive, made in China product.

Finally, a protein bar that is sugar-free, low in fat, high in protein, reasonable calories, and reasonably priced: Doctor’s Carbrite Diet protein bars.

As far as protein bars go, it is hard to find ones that meet the above criteria. These do, and they taste pretty good for protein bars! Try the chocolate mint, s’mores, and other flavors. But remember, these are protein bars — not candy, not ice cream.

Acid reflux can be a serious problem. If not properly treated, the disorder can be associated with serious disease; fatalities can occur.

In addition to medication, acid reflux sufferers often are advised by their physicians to sleep on a tilt of approximately 6 inches to 10 inches. Such is the advice given by the American College of Gastroenterology for those with Gastric Esophageal Reflux Disease (also known as GERD).

Achieving the 6 inch to 10 inch tilt for sleeping can be achieved in several ways. One way to do it is by using wood pieces placed under the bed. Unfortunately, if there is more than one person sleeping in the bed who does not have acid reflux, then he or she may not wish to learn to sleep on such a slope. Fortunately, ResearchReporterBlog has identified three portable products worthy of consideration to solve this problem.

First, Empire Medical Concepts (1-800-524-3340) offers the WEDG-EZE Elevated Body Lounge. This item provides soft “hospital grade” polyurethane foam. It is hypoallergenic and portable. This item is designed for use by one person. Thus, if a couple is sharing a bed and only one person has acid reflux, then this item allows the acid reflux sufferer to achieve the desired slope in sleeping position without disturbing his or her partner. The next two items offer the same advantage, but in different ways.

For those who travel and have acid reflux, two different items are recommended, based on individual preferences.

Medslant offers a folding pillow wedge that provides the desired slope for sleeping. It comes in a portable case designed for travel. Medslant.com provides more detailed information.

Finally, Jobri offers The Wedge NoFlux™ Inflatable Pad, which includes a hand pump. With this product, the inflatable pad folds almost to the size of a bulky dress shirt packed for travel. It does require some time to inflate the pad for sleep (and some time to deflate the pad) but it provides a clever travel solution for the acid reflux sufferer.

If you have acid reflux but have not received medical care, you are strongly advised to see your doctor regarding your symptoms.