I got two like that over the years before giving up on them, and several friends had some.

They usually suck, even the expensive ones. To sleep they're OK, if you like futons and you don't turn them back to a sofa very regularly. If you use them as sofas a lot, they get packed and need beating and turning a lot more to keep them comfortable to sleep, and most don't make that great sofas anyway (that gets worse over time). The cheaper bases are often very annoying after a while, but even the good ones aren't really made to sustain daily use (stores will tell you different, of course).

Average life of a thick futon mattress used daily is something like 2 years, after that you endure it more than anything.

They are very good for guest rooms, especially if you don't use the sofa there too much.

They're also good for students and such, anyone who plan to use them for only 2-3 years before buying something better.

The "western" so-called futons are a rather badly adapted concept, IMO. The real thing (which is what I've had for years now, changing it every year) is much better, thin (about an inch) mat, very easy to beat and keep from getting packed or uneven, light, very cheap, and easy to suspend to air it out, and to roll. You place it in the closet by day and bring the stuff out to sleep (that's what got adapted into let's turn in into a sofa like a cheaper hide-a-bed). They're terrible for hard floors though, and even with carpets it depends what's underneath. They're made to use on tatami flooring, though sleeping on the floor and with a thin mattress isn't appealing to most north americans (which is why they made them much thicker than the real thing, but it's not practical as it's a mattress you need to beat often to keep it in shape, and the thick ones are too heavy and cumbersome to handle for that, especially in small rooms). You're supposed to air them outdoor a lot too (they absorb smells much faster than mattresses), and with the thick ones that's all but impossible.