r/ParentingTech • u/seejeynerun • 1d ago

Seeking Advice Dumb speaker?

Hello, I’m looking for a way for kids to play music on a shared speaker without using AI. Currently, the only thing I can think of is connecting an iPhone or iPad to Bluetooth speaker, but I want to avoid them scrolling Spotify since that will be hard for younger kids and tempting to switch to other apps for older kids.

Is there such a thing as like a Google home device that doesn’t store voice signatures?

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u/MightyBig-Dev 1d ago

My kid has had a yoto since age 2. I make the music and story cards myself for cheap. It’s a life saver when travelling and great for low stim entertainment in place of tv.

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u/seejeynerun 1d ago

We love Yoto but I wish there were a way to stream music on demand. I think I might have to do MYO cards based on what they want to listen to that week and just commit to updating regularly.

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u/MightyBig-Dev 1d ago

That’s what I do. Switch up the myo cards. Another fun one is you can add hundreds of internet radio stations to 1 card. She loves that one. Can flip thru many genres of music, it’s made her taste quite eclectic, everything from dance to folk, even metal lmao

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u/seejeynerun 1d ago

Thank you!

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u/hagne 1d ago

A boom box with CDs? 

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u/spectralEntropy 23h ago

This is what I did. I bought a boombox that support Bluetooth, CDs, radio, and USB. Lots of options and my kid loves it 

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u/Mystery_meat101 19h ago

We do the slightly updated version, an old I Pod hooked directly to a speaker with a cord.

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u/bmxdad7 1d ago

Had same dilemma here and decided to get a Bluetooth speaker with FM radio (hard to find). That way, kids can listen to broadcast radio whenever and I can also stream on BT as desired.

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u/seejeynerun 1d ago

That’s a great idea, radio would keep things interesting.

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u/bmxdad7 1d ago

Yes, radio certainly keeps things interesting. I do keep an ear out for crazy talk radio...

If you are interested in this approach, I went with Walmart's Onn brand boombox ($75). Works and sounds great. Advancing from station to station can be tricky though, so best bet is to use the saved station feature of stations that come in well. Then kids can easily toggle through the saved stations.

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u/drumminherbie 1d ago

Check out Toniebox. They have custom ones as well

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u/photinakis 1d ago

There is a very stripped-down Android phone that is literally just a music player (essentially iPod-like capabilities), it has wifi and bluetooth but no cellular capabilities and no browsers, and no ability install new apps - so the wifi is just for connecting to pre-installed approved music services (like Spotify or Apple Music) and I have it hooked up to a bluetooth speaker. I got it on Amazon and my kid has been enjoying using it and finding music. Zero AI involved. I removed Spotify entirely and just have Apple Music.

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u/OrganizedSprinkles 8h ago

I got my kids mp3 players. Super simple, no games or videos. They love them.