# Yoto Player

Hacker Approved page: https://hackerapproved.com/p/yoto-player/

21 people recommended Yoto Player in Hacker News comments, 2 had mixed feelings and 6 criticized it, November 2025 to October 2026. It was recommended in 3 of 12 months, in 6 threads. It does not meet the Hacker Approved badge rule.

12 of the 21 people who recommend it commented in one thread, “Floppy disks turn out to be the greatest TV remote for kids”.

**Verdict:** Kids' audio player with offline story and music cards that parents praise for quality and easy custom cards. Common caveat: a walled content garden that depends on Yoto's servers.

Summary written by Claude from 32 comments. It was written before the November 2026 recount, and 31 of those comments still count.

## Why people recommend it

- Kids love it, long-term use (3 comments in the sample): "+1 for Yoto, our kids (5-7) have abused them for years." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48402923)) "We got my daughter a Yoto and it's a great device." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48367447)) "Our toddler absolutely loves her Yoto player" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48402765))
- Good for learning and entertainment (3 comments in the sample): "absolutely invaluable for self directed learning and entertainment" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46589510)) "Looks like fun and educational toy, interesting find." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46589358)) "Yoto is great for that age" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46716385))
- Make your own cards (3 comments in the sample): "their “make your own cards” system is pretty much open to whatever  you want to do" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50319872)) "there is an API: https://yoto.dev/api/ . You can do all sorts of things" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50318158)) "I second the Yoto. My son and I have had much fun making our own cards" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46594544))
- Well thought-out for parents and kids (2 comments in the sample): "The concept is great though and the specific product, walled content garden notwithstanding, has been a net win for us." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46589943)) "Yoto is quite amazing, well thought-out product, for both parents and kids." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46601021))

## What people warn about

- Limited features without the app (2 comments in the sample): "the kids devices like Yoto are too limited (or require downloads" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46713535)) "it's a poor player (no shuffle without app, etc" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46735422))

## What people recommend instead

- [Toniebox](https://hackerapproved.com/p/toniebox/): 5 recommend, 1 mixed, 1 criticize

## Where to get it

- [Visit the official site](https://us.yotoplay.com/)

## The badge

A product earns the Hacker Approved badge when at least 10 people recommend it, recommenders outnumber critics at least 2 to 1 (mixed feelings count toward neither side), it was recommended in at least 4 of the 12 months and in at least 5 different threads, and no single thread supplies more than half of the people who recommend it. Health and money products are never badged.

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "Yoto Player", https://hackerapproved.com/p/yoto-player/ (21 recommend, 2 mixed, 6 criticize; Hacker News comments, November 2025 to October 2026).

Counts updated 2 Nov 2026, with data through October 31, 2026.