Simba Hybrid Pillow Review
An adjustable pillow that lets you add or remove filling, which makes it the safest pillow purchase you can make online.
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Verdict
An adjustable pillow that lets you add or remove filling, which makes it the safest pillow purchase you can make online. Pillow height is the most personal variable in bedding and the one you are least able to judge from a description, so a pillow you can tune after buying removes almost all of the risk.
Buy it if
You are buying a pillow without trying it, which is almost everyone, and you want to be able to correct the height afterwards.
Avoid it if
You already know your exact loft preference and want a simpler, cheaper fixed pillow.
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| Specification | Detail |
|---|---|
| Type | Adjustable fill pillow |
| Adjustment | Filling can be added or removed |
| Contains | Aerocoil micro-springs and Simbatex foam |
| Suits | All sleeping positions, once adjusted |
The scores
The adjustability is the feature, and it solves the hardest problem in pillow buying.
Not cheap. Cheaper than buying three pillows before finding the right one.
Holds its set height under a head all night, which is the property that decides a pillow.
Once set to the right height, support is good across positions.
Micro-springs and open structure foam. Cooler than solid memory foam.
Genuinely adjustable, which is the right answer for a product nobody can spec in advance.
Washes at home, which most pillow fills cannot.
Pillow height is the whole decision
Almost everything written about pillows discusses fill material, and the variable that actually determines whether a pillow works for you is height, usually called loft.
The principle is simple. Your head should sit so the neck continues the natural line of the spine, neither tipped up nor dropped down. How much height that takes depends on your sleeping position and the width of your shoulders.
| Position | Loft needed | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Side | High | The gap between shoulder and head is largest, especially with broad shoulders |
| Back | Medium | Enough to support the neck curve without pushing the head forward |
| Front | Very low, or none | Any height forces the neck into extension |
A side sleeper with broad shoulders and a front sleeper need almost opposite pillows. That is why fixed pillows are such a gamble bought online, and why an adjustable one is worth paying for.
Your pillow height depends on your mattress
Here is the part almost nobody mentions, and it explains why a pillow that worked for years suddenly stops.
The softer your mattress, the further your shoulder sinks into it, and the less pillow height you need to keep your neck level. Move from a firm mattress to a soft one and your old pillow is now too high. Move from a sagging mattress to a supportive one and it may now be too low.
So if you have just bought a new mattress and your neck aches, the mattress may be fine and the pillow may now be wrong. Adjust the pillow before concluding anything about the mattress, and give it a fortnight.
A correction worth making
Commonly repeated, and wrong
Pillows are almost always reviewed and marketed on fill material, with memory foam, down, latex and microfibre treated as the main decision. Height is more important than fill for almost everyone, because it determines whether your neck continues the line of your spine or is bent for eight hours. A side sleeper with broad shoulders and a front sleeper need opposite pillow heights regardless of what either pillow is filled with.
Should you buy it?
Yes. Buying a pillow online means guessing at the one variable that matters most, and an adjustable pillow removes that guess entirely.
If you have just changed mattress and your neck aches, adjust the pillow before blaming the mattress. A softer mattress needs a lower pillow.
Questions people ask
What matters most when choosing a pillow?
Height, not fill material. Your head should sit so the neck continues the natural line of the spine. Side sleepers need high loft, back sleepers medium, front sleepers very low or none. A side sleeper with broad shoulders and a front sleeper need opposite pillows.
Why does my neck hurt after a new mattress?
Your pillow height may now be wrong. The softer your mattress, the further your shoulder sinks and the less pillow height you need. Move to a softer mattress and your old pillow is suddenly too high. Adjust the pillow before concluding anything about the mattress.