Yoto Player test: once upon a time there was an exceptional story box

Construction and ergonomics

Despite its appearance as a small alarm clock radio, the Yoto Player (3rd generation) has a very basic design. With its Rubik's Cube feel, this perfectly square story box displays a childish design.

However, its much larger dimensions than most of the models in our comparison and its relatively heavy weight of 780 g give it a robust appearance which inspires confidence, which is no small thing when we imagine that it will be mishandled by the children. For the smallest, however, this weight can be detrimental and the Lunnii could be more suitable for this. Yoto specifies that its Yoto Mini is more suitable for nomadic use while the Yoto Player (3rd generation) is more suitable for sedentary use. For the rest, no play is felt when handling the story box and the finishes are impeccable.

It's difficult to miss the prominent pixel display on the front which has nothing of a screen, rest assured. This display is used to tell the time, to illustrate the daily newspaper, the day's weather, to navigate the functions of the story box or the chapters of a story.

Only two large buttons allow you to control the Yoto Player (3rd generation). It is a good thing to want to limit the number of buttons on a device dedicated to toddlers, but this system is not necessarily very suitable for the little ones who will have to painfully assimilate that a click on the right button is used to launch the day, a double-click to launch the radio, when the left wheel can stop the playback of content or also serves as a wheel to adjust the volume.

Children aged 3 to 5 will therefore need a little support for the first uses. It would have seemed more intuitive to us to arrange the buttons on either side of the screen, even if it meant sacrificing the rather harmonious aesthetic side of the layout of the controls.

Application

The Yoto app provides access to all the content offered by the brand, and it is plump. The Audio Library tab allows you to browse the different contents (available cards, cards to create, sounds to fall asleep to, podcasts, radios). It is possible to add content to the audio library and start playback from the Yoto directly from the smartphone without having to buy a card, which is very practical. However, you have to deal with advertising before and during reading; it's quite painful on a daily basis and really not suitable for young audiences, but it's a good idea to enjoy such a complete audio library for free.

The application also allows you to program this story box, in particular to assign to it the actions which will be triggered by a first click on the right button and the second. It is also from this interface that the parent defines the time and alarm ringtone, the color of the night light, adjusts the light intensity of the display or consults the temperature of the room. Because yes, the device has a thermometer!

Rich, complete and well designed, the application is intuitive.

Content and operation

The Yoto Player (3rd generation) gives pride of place to audio content and its features are numerous.

Physical cards for stories

This story box comes with a card to create, meaning that it is up to parents to record their own story or song which will then be broadcast by the Yoto Player (3rd generation). The Yoto story catalog, as rich as it is varied, consists of more than 260 audiobooks in French and 700 in English.

There you will find the Disney must-haves (The Lion King, Aladdin, Cinderella, Beauty and the Beastetc.), but also Charlie or the Chocolate Factory, The Little Prince, Mortal Adele. For toddlers, cards broadcasting noises (rain, heartbeat, hairdryer, white noise, etc.) can be purchased. For older children, educational cards (to learn flags, French history or English) are also offered.

This is where Yoto intends to make its money since these cards are sold for €10 on average. The collection is therefore worth its weight in gold. But unlike the Lunii stories which cannot be broken down into chapters, Yoto's can be interrupted during a story to be picked up the next day.

To start reading the stories, nothing could be simpler: the child inserts the card into the Player and the reading begins automatically. There is nothing else to do except change the chapters using the left wheel or change the volume.

Varied audio content

More than a simple story box, the Yoto Player (3rd generation) has the originality and intelligence to launch a sort of mini-diary. Every day, children wake up with information, an anecdote, a riddle or a quiz. So many educational games that allow you to diversify the content. Added to this is also a radio which broadcasts songs (without words or advertising) adapted to the time of day (rhythmic music during the day and much softer in the evening), which is delightful.

Finally, a mode that we particularly appreciate is the one that allows timers for brushing your teeth or tidying your room. While the Yoto box plays, children must engage in this activity until it stops. Fun and practical!

An alarm clock and a night light

The Yoto Player (3rd generation) is an educational clock which, in addition to displaying the time, indicates to the child whether it is morning, afternoon or evening with small pictograms on the display . If the offspring can wake up with their Yoto (to be configured in the app), the latter can also act as a lullaby (with suitable sounds) and a night light. The back of the box lights up in seven colors that can also be adjusted in the app.

The night light lights up automatically when the Yoto Player (3rd generation) is positioned on the screen, which is definitely practical. As written above, the device includes a thermometer to indicate the temperature of the room, always readable in the app.

Customizable content

All Yoto players are sold with a blank card to record whatever you want. It can be an evening story, a story, a song or a podcast, it depends.

Bluetooth speaker

Not content with offering a radio with songs suitable for little ones, this story box can act as a Bluetooth speaker. And like any speaker, it can play content sent by a smartphone, a function that can always help.

Internal storage

From the application, it is possible to download audio content (books, podcasts or “home” content) to integrate it into the Yoto Player (3rd generation). This helps avoid carrying cards that could be misplaced. The storage capacity is 32 GB, enough to offer 600 hours of listening time.

Audio

The speakers of this story box are very amazing. Tested in the company of our lab director and former head of the audio department, the Yoto Player (3rd generation) delivers very credible stereo sound for this product category. The sound emitted is pleasant to the ear, very warm with perfectly intelligible voices, and that is the essential thing.

As a Bluetooth speaker, one might consider that the whole thing is not very precise. The treble can be a little aggressive, but it remains moderate. There is no maddening extension in the bass, but a certain roundness that emerges. The minimum volume is really low, which is particularly useful for bedtime nursery rhymes. As for the maximum level, it can send 65 dB (A) when you are 35 cm from the storyteller.

Rather well done, the diehard app allows you to limit the maximum volume for day and night, which is particularly useful to avoid damaging children's ears or annoying parents (especially when traveling). by car). And for even quieter use, it is possible to connect headphones to the mini-jack output. Obviously, the opportunity is too good for Yoto to sell an own-brand headband helmet sized for children. We won't choose it for listening to music due to its limited performance, but it serves its purpose for listening to stories and nursery rhymes.