If you’re deciding whether a Yoto Player or a Tonie Box is the right audio player for your child then you’re in the right place. Yoto Vs Tonie player. Firstly, I’d read my main review – Tonie Box or Yoto Player? In this post I offer for people to leave a comment or email me if they have any specific questions to help them decide.
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As a family we’ve used Yoto and Tonies for a while and still continue to use both branded audio players still every day. My daughter Floss loves them. I don’t have all the answers, but if you have certain circumstances or questions I can usually give some insight that may be helpful. One person who contacted me recently said I should add to the website the information I’d given as others may find it helpful.
I didn’t want to make the one blog post incredibly long with all the different questions I get and the answers I give so thought it might be helpful to add posts that may cover topics that would benefit others too. Therefore, welcome to the first FAQs (frequently asked questions) for Yoto and Tonie players.
FAQ – Yoto or Tonie?
This reader has a young child (2.5 years old) who does not watch TV or movies etc. They felt reviews seemed to suggest that Yoto is more for older children. Although they thought Tonies have appealing characters that their child may like but they had concerns around the ratio of Tonies that were Disney content.
Where to Buy Tonies and Toniebox discount codes
Where to Buy Yoto Players and Yoto discount codes
IMPORTANT SAFETY NOTICE FROM YOTO FOR YOTO MINI PLAYERS – you will get an email from Yoto directly if you have purchased a Yoto Mini from 2021-2023 but you can find out more information here.
My Thoughts…
Disney Content on Tonies Characters and Yoto Cards
There is certainly a large quotient of the Tonies range that is film and TV inspired as opposed to books. Floss is now 6 and we’ve been using both the Tonie Box and Yoto Player for a while now. Yoto cards also have Disney content as well as other movie and TV series yet there is more of a balance with other content.
Are Tonies Characters More Appealing than Yoto Cards?
Side by side I would absolutely say Tonies Characters have more kerb appeal! I also love that these hand painted characters can be used in play as small world figures too. However, they are generally more expensive in comparison to Yoto cards. They also take up more room if you are looking for your audio player to portable.
I believe there will come and age where Floss will possibly feel that the Tonie characters are too young for her and will prefer the cards as she grows and moves into teen years. However she’s still very much drawn to the ‘characters’ of the Tonie Box right now and will often select those more herself with me putting on content on her Yoto at bedtime. For younger children I do feel the Tonie box is very easy to use.
The Yoto player does have visual appeal on both the standard player and Yoto mini through the light up display. My daughter does love the display on her Yoto Mini and particularly enjoys the fact you can customise the chapter display on Yoto Make Your Own Cards.
One final thought when considering the appeal of both Tonie characters and Yoto cards is that you are making a direct comparison between them. Unless your child has had previous experience of either a Tonie box or Yoto player they don’t have that direct comparison. Therefore if you choose to go for one over the other they aren’t going to know what they’re ‘missing’ from the other. They will just love the audio player you have chosen for them and the features of that player.
Is Tonie or Yoto Better for Selective Audio Content?
For me, it would come down to three things:
- Your available time
- Where you plan to get digital content from
- How long your audio content is
Both Tonies and Yoto have the option to be able to create your own content to add onto either a ‘Creative Tonie’ or ‘Make Your Own (MYO)’ Yoto card.
If you feel strongly that your child would be more interested in the characters (but don’t want as much film and TV audio content exposure) you could add your own content to the Creative Tonies.
It is quick to do but obviously does take a little time compared to just purchasing a pre-loaded Tonie.
The other thing I would consider here is that if you do go down this option each Creative Tonie can have 90 minutes of audio added onto it.
If you plan on having audio content that is longer than this then it may not be a suitable option. We found, especially during the global pandemic, it was a lovely way to share stories from family members by getting them to record stories to be added.
Yoto does have a wider range of content that is not film or TV based. Therefore if you don’t plan to purchase audio from elsewhere this may be more helpful to you. Again, if you have time constraints then pre-loaded content may be a better option for you.
Yoto have a wider range of non-fiction titles compared with Tonies. You can also add your own content to make your own cards and can add up to 6 hours worth of audio content per card. Therefore, if you want to be able to add lengthier audio this may be better option.
Yoto Vs Tonie?
I hope you’ve found this reader posed question and answers helpful. If you haven’t already read my original post you can click on the image below to take you to the post.
Where to Buy Yoto Players and Yoto discount codes
IMPORTANT SAFETY NOTICE FROM YOTO FOR YOTO MINI PLAYERS – you will get an email from Yoto directly if you have purchased a Yoto Mini from 2021-2023 but you can find out more information here.
Where to Buy Tonies and Toniebox discount codes
If you have your own question then please do leave a comment on this post or drop me an email and I’ll be more than happy to try and help you understand whether a Tonie box or Yoto player may be the better option for your child. They’re not cheap options, but for us as a family, they are worth every penny we’ve spent and continue to spend on them.
My email address is – lisa@busybusylearning.com or drop a comment below.
