The Appeal of Yoto

Blog post by Lucy

Toyville has been a Yoto stockist since late 2021 and since then we’ve seen the Yoto brand grow hugely in popularity. We now stock both the large and mini players, accessories and nearly 100 different audio cards. At time of writing we’re the only stockist in Bristol! If you’d like to try the player out then please do pop in to check it out.

Yoto is now one of our best-selling brands in store. When so many people have access to smart speakers and tablets, why has this little audio player grabbed the attention of so many?

Sleep

Have you ever given your child your phone to listen to a bedtime story to help them get to sleep? Whispered to Alexa to turn off once your kid is asleep only to for to start giving you stats on rainfall in Belgium?! Then you are not alone, I think this is one of the main reasons I see parents in store looking at Yoto players. With the Yoto, your child can put their chosen sleepy story card into the player themselves. However, you are still in charge. Through the app on your phone or tablet, you can set a maximum volume on the player, a bedtime (a moon will show instead of a sun) and even turn off the story from the app without going into the child’s bedroom. There is also a whole page of free sleep sounds on the app. So, if your children like drifting off to the sounds of camping in rural France or a noisy fan (to name but a few of those available!) then Yoto have you covered.

Our best-selling sleep stories are 10 minutes to Bed, Puffin Sleepy tales and Ladybird Sleepy tales.

Daily radio and routine

Yoto have a daily radio show which is accessed by a single press of the right-hand button. This is hosted by Jake, an ex-teacher who is really engaging and amusing. The radio show is much loved by the Yoto community and for many, has turned into a vital part of the daily routine. Yoto has caught on to this and provided even more helpful content such as the toothbrush and tidy up timers on the ‘Discover’ page on the app.

I know that one of the main reasons we got the original Yoto player in our household was to help establish a ‘quiet time’ into our routine. It was yet another lockdown and I was desperate for a way to introduce this quiet time (aka ‘Mummy gets a break’ time).  I used to put a story on the Yoto while the boys played LEGO. They would quietly play and listen for well over an hour before the next demand for a snack. This became a very important part of our routine and is still a go-to when things get too hectic.

Cards such as Winnie the Pooh, Paddington and the Ladybird Audio Adventures have been repeatedly listened to at home. I also really rate the ‘Make your own cards‘ – any MP3 can be added to a make your own card easily in the app.

Travel (Yoto Original Player vs Yoto Mini Player)

Yoto introduced the Yoto mini player in early 2021. I often get asked what the difference between the two is. I think the main Yoto player is great as a player to be used at home. It sits on a charging dock so is always on, has a clock on the front and is larger and more robust that the mini. However, for how small the mini is (about the size of the palm of an adult’s hand) the sound quality is excellent and the controls work in the same way as the big Yoto player.

Both of my children asked for minis for their birthdays. They love using them in the car and have transformed our 3 hour journeys to Pembrokeshire. My 7 year old also loves to listen to his mini in bed with his headphones on. Cards can be played on any player within the family group and if cards happen to get lost, all content can be put onto a make your own, meaning you never lose the content. I’ve seen that Yoto cards are now available at many airports including Bristol, I think this is great but it’s important (from experience!!) to make sure that all content is downloaded to the player prior to travelling (this can be accessed through the player settings in the app).

Our top cards for the car – Ladybird Stories for Car Journeys, Oi Frog, Horrible Histories Box Set and Matilda.

These are just a few reasons why I think the Yoto player continues to be so popular. If you have a player, what’s your favourite thing about it? If you are reading this and think that this might be something you need in your life, pop into store and have a play with our demo. There is so much more to the player than meets the eye.

-Lucy