Audio storytelling devices provide screen-free entertainment for kids, who can operate the toys independently—the way we used to play with CD and cassette players. The audio, though, goes beyond music. They also usually include stories and games.
Currently, the two most popular devices are the Toniebox 2 and the YOTO 3rd generation. Both are great, but which one would suit your kid better? I tried each device to see how they compare.
Toniebox 2
I tried out the second version of the Toniebox, which is an updated take on the original (my fellow colleagues reviewed and loved this model as well). Toniebox 2 feels soft, and can withstand some roughhousing from kids. You connect it to WiFi to set it up initially, pairing it to an app on your phone. The box acts as a reader, downloading each Tonies' content. Each time you introduce a new Tonies figure, the box will need to be on WiFi, but once the box "knows" a figure, it can play it offline.
✔️ Toniebox 2 is age-graded for 1 year+. The brand is doubling down on its offerings for young kids with My First Tonies for toddlers and Cuddle Tonies for preschoolers.
✔️ Tonies are fun to collect, display, and play with on their own, with classic figures like Peter Rabbit and dozens of Disney characters. What little fan wouldn't want a mini Elsa or Moana, or a storytelling Lightning McQueen or Simba?
✔️ Tonies is truly screen-free. And it's fun to operate. Kids learn to tweak an ear to turn it on, and to tip the box on its side to fast-forward ahead in a story.
YOTO
Everything is smaller with YOTO, from the box to the cards that contain content. It has the same WiFi configuration as the Toniebox 2, where you must download each new YOTO card while connected to WiFi. Afterwards, however, the box can read the card offline. I tried out the third generation of the regular YOTO, but there's an even smaller one, the YOTO Mini, which was a winner of one of our previous Travel Awards.
✔️ YOTO is age-graded for 3 years+ and has content that's great for older kids, such as the soundtracks for KPop Demon Hunters and Wicked. There's even stuff for teens and adults—they've got Queen: Greatest Hits Volume 1 for those of us who still want to listen to an entire album.
✔️ YOTO cards are easier to take on the go than the Tonies. But the cards aren't anything special that you'd play with, whereas the Tonies are little toys onto themselves.
✔️ YOTO has a display. My 9-year-old niece argues that it's not a screen, not like a kid's tablet. There's just a goofy pixelated image that changes with the content. One thing I loved about the display: It becomes a clock when not being used with a card. Parents can adjust the times for when YOTO shows a sun, for daytime, or a moon, for sleep.
Other ways they compare
I tried both at home and on a weekend trip with my 9-year-old niece. In my opinion they are:
✔️ Tied in ease of setup. Both take some minor fussing to download the app, connect to the WiFi, and so on. But I had each device up and working in about five minutes.
✔️ Tied (more or less) in price. Prices go up and down with sales and the season, but each device generally hovers between $100 and $150. Tonies figures are usually around $20 each and YOTO cards vary more widely, from about $10 to $50.
✔️ Toniebox 2 has a short cord, YOTO has a long one. YOTO is easier to plug into the car or at a hotel room or on a plane, because of its long cord. The Toniebox 2 cord is very short, so you have to charge it right next to an outlet. In case it matters: YOTO's cord has a traditional USB-A end, and the Toniebox 2 cord has a USB-C end. Neither comes with a charging brick, so you have to use one you already have.
✔️ YOTO's battery lasts longer. Toniebox 2 markets itself as up to 10 hours of battery life, and YOTO has more like 24 hours of playtime. Both seem like plenty to me, since they're easy to recharge.
✔️ Both brands have compatible headphones. Your kid can listen and you don't have to. Tonies sells Bluetooth headphones for the Toniebox 2 and there are similar YOTO wireless headphones. Each brand sells wired headphones as well.
✔️ Both brands allow you to record your own content. I did not personally try this, but there are Creative Tonies and YOTO Make Your Own Cards for you, or a relative, or your child to use to record a tale.
Which storytelling device is right for your child?
In my opinion, it comes down to age.
Toniebox 2 is great for toddlers and young kids. There is robust content around nursery rhymes and classic stories. There are even Tonies Sleepy Friends to help set the scene for bedtime. There's no screen, and the box is made to be operated even by a small person. It can, however, age up with your young kid. As they hit each new passion for a movie or TV show, there's likely a Tonies to match.
Toniebox is what I'd recommended to my cousin with 8-month old twins. Shhh, I will probably give her mine for their upcoming first birthday. I know she limits screentime and prioritizes sweet stories, and I think this is perfect.
YOTO is great for kids and preteens. My 9-year-old niece glommed on to the YOTO. Playing movie soundtracks was especially fun for her, and she would, for instance, tell me which KPop Demon Hunter character was being shown on that front display. I loved that it turned into a clock when we weren't playing with it. Book content such as The Chronicles of Narnia are definitely for older kids. But I don't want to make YOTO sound like it is only for big kids; the brand has plenty of little-kid offerings along the lines of Old MacDonald and Other Preschool Songs.
My niece turns 10 in June, and YOTO is the audio device I'd recommend for her, since there's so much content for her. And yeah, I will give her the one that we tested. I don't think my brother will mind her having another toy, it's small and its cards are, too.
