This mattress is great! The box it was shipped in was a little torn up, but the mattress itself was fully protected. Im not sure how long it took to fully expand, I opened it and left it for about three days. The mattress is medium-firm for sure. I would disagree with people saying this is a strictly firm matress, but its definitely not as soft as a typical medium. Honestly, I think its a pretty good middle ground. I will warn that the edges are fairly soft, so when you sit on the side of the bed, it will squish down quite a bit. Overall a really wonderful matress and Im extremely happy with it!