This tech is better than aircon at keeping me cool at night

The weather in the UK rarely goes to the extreme but when it really heats up I do miss aircon. Fans can only do so much when the air is thick and still, which can mean it’s tough to get to sleep. 

Luckily, I have a piece of tech in my bedroom that keeps me cool all night long, so even when the room is sweltering, I’m sleeping soundly. The Eight Sleep Pod 3 Cover goes over the top of any regular mattress and provides powerful temperature control for the mattress. You can heat up or cool down to your perfect temperature to fall asleep to, and then have it adjust for deep sleep, REM sleep and to wake you up in the morning. 

The system uses fine tubing to pump water across the surface of the cover to adjust the temperature and provides independent control for each side of the bed – so I can be a different temperature to my partner. The water and pump are stored in a case that sits next to the bed, around the size of a desktop PC, that’s connected to my home network and controlled via an app on my phone. 

I first used the Eight Sleep system back in 2022 when they launched the Eight Sleep Pod Pro which was available complete with mattress or as just the cover. In the UK, the newer Eight Sleep Pod 3 comes just as a cover and fits over any mattress. It’s like a really thick fitted sheet, that comes with additional straps so that it stays firmly in place over your own mattress. This is arguably a better system, as it allows you to pair it with the mattress of your choice, though I did like the way the Pod Pro zipped onto the mattress. 

Once the system is set up and water is added to the control box next to the bed, the system primes, pumping the water through the tiny pipes. The cover has padding so that you can’t feel the pipes, or any of the many sensors imbedded into it. When set to heat it feels much like an electric blanket, and when set to cold it properly chills the whole surface, letting you slide into a cool bed. 

The Eight Sleep Pod 3 does much more than just heat and cool though. The accompanying app lets you set your bed time temperature as well as deep sleep, REM and wakeup values between -10 and +10. For most of the year I rarely have to set it to more than +/-2 as it’s pretty powerful. The system then uses what it calls Autopilot to make small adjustments to the temperature to make sure you stay in a deep sleep. Last night, for instance, it made five adjustments, lowering and raising the heat by fractional amounts. 

There are sensors within the cover that measure heart rate, breathing rate and movement, allowing it to not only detect exactly when you fall asleep and wake up, but your resting heart rate, heart rate variability (stress levels) and the sleep stage you are in. Think of it like a really advanced sleep tracker, but without the restrictions that a battery powered wearable require. 

The important part though is that the Eight Sleep Pod 3 helps me get a better nights sleep, whatever the temperature. I’ve used it in the depths of a Chicago winter, and in last year’s UK heat wave, and slept soundly – at the right temperature – each time. I’ve recommended this system to all of my friends and family, and if you want to stay cool this summer, I couldn’t suggest it to you enough. At £2295 / $2245 / AU$3695 it’s certainly not cheap, but what price do you put on a good night’s sleep?

• Buy the Eight Sleep Pod 3 in the UK