This is the best electric blanket that I've tested - and it's actually a reasonable price too

I slept on the Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer for weeks, checking the comfort and coziness levels. Here's everything you need to know about the brand's best-selling electric blanket.

Historically, electric blankets haven't been very exciting. When I dug deep and invested in one, it was a thin felt layer with a wire running through it, leaving my bed warm, with cold patches. Thankfully, Dreamland have breezed in and changed the game, making some of the best electric blankets on the market.

The Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer promises a lot. The sherpa layer is warming, without any electricity. Once it's plugged in, you can split the blanket into two separate heating sections, leaving one unheated and one on full blast. It claims to warm up the bed in five minutes, keeping you warm, while still saving money on your bills. On paper, it seems like there's nothing the Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer can't do. Let's see whether it's as good in practice.

Specifications

Unboxing the Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer

Dreamland keeps their packaging simple, but effective. The Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer came in a bag, with some neat handles for carrying. The bag is one worth keeping because it's obviously designed to be reused for storage over the summer. It's spacious enough that you won't struggle to pack the Hunker Down back into the bag, whilst still being compact enough to keep. It's neat.

I ordered this in a king size, which I thought would make the blanket heavy to lug around. In actual fact, it was easy. The sherpa top feels warm to touch, even when the topper isn't on. In short, it's a dream to unbox. I was really excited to get this on the bed.

Who would the Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer suit?

The Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer comes with all the trappings of a luxury electric blanket. It has dual controls, a plush top layer, a durable design, and it's easy to use. Yes, it's about £50 more expensive than other models on the market, but it warrants the extra splurge, every time.

If you're a particularly cold person, this is set up to keep you warm. Dreamland claims that this can get the bed hot in just five minutes and in my tests that proved to be true. I'll talk more about that later. That means that you can jump into a bed that's not just warm because of the electric components, but also because of the fluffy sherpa layer. It takes cosiness and makes it ten times more cosy.

The other people this is perfectly set up for are couples. Nobody has the same temperature needs, so it's likely that your partner won't want the bed the same temperature that you do. The Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer is one of the few electric blankets that I've tested that actually manages to keep both sides of the bed at completely different temperatures. It's really impressive.

The only people this wouldn't suit, are those who want to sleep on a sheet. You lose the effect of the sherpa, so you're better off buying Dreamland's Warming Mattress Protector. That'll keep you hot whilst protecting your mattress. Also, some people don't like sleeping on sherpa, they'd rather have that texture in a throw that goes over them Rest assured, there are plenty of those out there, but they're not this. This is designed to be slept on.

What is the Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer like to use?

The Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer is a delight to use. It fits generously over the bed, easily stretching to all four corners of my mattress. Then, the remotes clip on to either side, offering each half of the bed a different amount of warmth, if that's what they want. These remotes Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer

I tested the Dreamland on the extremes. I set one side of the bed to maximum heat (10) and the other on a lower heat (3). Given that this claims to warm the bed in five minutes, I checked on the Dreamland's progress after just that.

On the cooler side, the edge had been taken off my mattress' temperature, but it wasn't hot yet. On the other side, the warmer was cosy, but not yet hot. After another five minutes, the cooler side was gently warm. The edge had certainly been taken off the sheets and it would be comfortable to climb into. On the other side, the bed was hot. I mean, strip down because you'll be sweating kind of hot, which is great. It's the kind of feature I'd make use of if I came home late and forgot to set the electric blanket running. This could get the bed warm before you've even brushed your teeth.

I've been playing around with the different temperature settings ever since. I've settled on 6 as my favourite. I'm a pretty cold person. In the winter, I sleep in joggers, with the duvet, and then a couple of blankets on top. On six, I think I could go back to cotton pyjamas and just a normal duvet. It's warm and cosy, possibly even too hot to keep on overnight.

A nice extra touch is the pillow section of the blanket. This doesn't get hot at all, which makes sense. There's no point warming where your pillow would sit. It only enhances how money and energy-efficient this is. Well done, Dreamland.

Aside from a range of temperature settings, the Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer comes with timers. You can set the blanket to run for one hour, three hours, or nine hours. This is perfect, because you'll never accidentally leave the blanket running, even if you fall asleep. You can even plan to have it running whilst you're asleep. And, again, the two sides can stay on independent timers too. These thoughtful features really put the dream in Dreamland.

How do you clean the Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer?

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Dreamland has cleverly designed the Hunker Down Mattress Warmer to be machine washable. Don't ask me how, but it is. This means that you can unclip the controls on either side of warmer separating them from the blanket and then you can bung the main blanket into the washing machine. Dreamland recommends running this on a cooler wash and I'd also throw in a suggestion to use Ecover Laundry Detergent I love their laundry capsules), since this is much more gentle on the fibres of your warmer. They'll stay softer for longer.

How does the Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer compare?

I've made my way through all of the best electric blankets, heated throws, and heated ponchos out there and the Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer is the front-runner for me. It's really no surprise, because, this does everything and, it doesn't charge for it.

The closest competitors for the esteem that the Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer are Dunelm's Teddy Mattress Warmer and Dreamland's Organic Cotton Warming Mattress Protector.

I'll start with Dunelm's. This is just £40, nearly a third of the price of the Dreamland, but the fur doesn't feel cheap. In fact, it's plush and soft enough to feel underneath the sheets, if you choose to tuck yours away like that. It also has dual controls and nine different temperature settings. I really really liked this, especially the price tag. However, it's much slower at warming up the bed. Even on the hottest setting, the Dunelm layer took 15 minutes to get my bed warm and, even then, it only took the edge of the chill. By that time, the Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer could have had my bed steaming, if it wanted to.

On to the other alternative, Dreamland's Organic Cotton Warming Mattress Protector. Now, this offers something slightly different. You still get some plushness, but instead, it's quilted, rather than fluffy. It's much more practical, but you still get the joys of dual controls and speedy heating. If anything, the dual controls are more pronounced in their differences in comparison to the Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer. The thing that really wins credit with me is that this is organic cotton. The Dunelm model is recycled polyester, which is nice, but not very breathable. Organic cotton is gentle on your skin, moisture-wicking, and breathable to sleep on. So, you can get hot, but not sweaty. That's the sweet spot.

Should you buy the Dreamland Hunker Down Mattress Warmer?

If you're a cold person who's looking for ways to make their home cosier, this scores double points. The sherpa layer feels warm just to touch and then the dual-controls can heat the bed up in just five minutes. Of all the electric blankets that I've tested, this is the best. No questions asked.

How we test

I've been running all the tests of electric blankets at woman&home, so I am effectively the control across all of our reviews. Before I even touch an electric blanket, I do my research. In fact, my days look like a lot of Googling around the best electric blankets, looking for the latest and greatest releases on the market.

Once I have found one that I think you'll like, I test it in my own home. I make notes on what it's like to unbox, what it feels like, how it fits on the bed. Then, most importantly, what it's like at keeping the bed warm. I test all the features and settings over weeks, so that I can give you real life feedback on what they're like.

Then, given that I've tested them all, it only seems natural that I make some comparisons. It's also a great time to talk about value and whether there are better models out there. I'll come to a conclusion about who it suits and whether you should buy it.