The Death of the Futon, Finally

No one ever really liked those damned, uncomfortable futons, anyway. They had their moment filling up college apartments, but now that repurposing is hot, a "vintage sofa" is the hipper and more affordable way to go for college kids.

And for the rest of us, now that air mattresses have improved in quality, there may be no more need for heavy, costly sofa beds, either. The New York Times recently took a test-drive of several air mattresses in search of comfort. We've taken that one step further to look for affordability and to see if once and for all the sofa bed needs to be put to bed.