Best Toniebox Sets

Buying guide for Best Tonieboxes

When you as a parent feel like your kids are spending far too much time staring at screens, having a screen-free piece of tech may sound appealing. When it’s as cute and as easy to use as an audio reader from Toniebox, it may feel like a lifesaver on days when you need some calm, quiet playtime.

At its heart, a Toniebox is a small, box-shaped audio speaker. The magic of Tonieboxes comes from the characters and stories they can play with controls that are easy for children to use. 

Rather than having your child try to operate a cassette tape, streaming audio, or audio CD, the Toniebox starts playing the desired story when the child places the Tonie figurine associated with the story on top of the Toniebox. You need to create a Wi-Fi connection for the Toniebox when you purchase it. The Toniebox can then connect with its host server. It automatically downloads and plays the selected story from the cloud.

Kids can’t make purchases through the Toniebox. Instead, you purchase access to the stories by buying a particular Tonie figurine. The child then chooses the story to have the Toniebox read aloud by selecting the figurine associated with the story.

German inventors Marcus Stahl and Patric Faßbender purposefully made the design of the Toniebox as low-tech as possible.

How to buy the best Toniebox

Colors

Tonieboxes are available in several different colors, so kids can find their favorites. The primary color options are blue, gray, green, pink, purple, and red. The color of the Toniebox does not affect the way the audio plays or the functionality of the box.

Materials

The Toniebox has a soft, cushioned feel to it with no sharp corners, as the speaker is inside a padded material that doesn’t come loose. The exterior fabric is water-resistant.

It’s made for children to be able to handle it safely and sit with it in their laps comfortably. It feels like a chunky building block. All Tonieboxes consist of the same durable materials.

Size and weight

Each Toniebox is the same size, measuring 4.7 inches on all sides, creating a cube. The Toniebox weighs about 21 ounces.

Controls

All Tonieboxes have a pair of pointy “ears” that extend out of the top of the box. These work as the volume controls for the audio speaker, rather than using traditional buttons that kids may struggle to operate. 

To fast-forward through the story or to skip songs that are part of the Tonie, children can tap the sides of the Toniebox rather than using buttons or switches.

To use Toniebox, you need to connect the unit to a Wi-Fi source. The Toniebox can remember up to six different Wi-Fi sources, so once you set up a Wi-Fi connection at your house, at Grandma’s house, or at the babysitter’s house, the Toniebox should remember it and make the connection automatically next time.

Playback options

Every Toniebox ships with a standard headphone jack. Kids can either play the audio through the main speaker at the heart of the Toniebox, or they can connect headphones. There is no option to make use of wireless headphones through a Bluetooth connection.

Battery

All Tonieboxes include charging stations when you purchase them. Plug the charging station into a standard outlet and place the Toniebox onto the charging station to begin charging the battery.

A Toniebox can take up to three hours to create a full charge the first time you use it. You should be able to fully charge it within a couple of hours in subsequent charging sessions. With a full charge in the battery, you should receive up to seven hours of continuous playback.

There is no option to remove the internal battery or to make use of alkaline batteries.

Key extra features for Tonieboxes and Tonies

Tonies

The Tonie is a figurine measuring two to three inches in height that the child can grab and attach to the Toniebox to start playing a story or some music. When the child places the Tonie character on top of the Toniebox, the Tonie remains in place thanks to a magnetic connection. To stop the story or music, the child simply removes the Tonie.

The Tonies consist of sturdy materials and feature hand-painted details, so they look great. Tonies often look like cute animals or favorite characters that your children know well.

Unfortunately, if the child loses the Tonie, the ability to play the story or music is no longer possible.

Tonies come in three main types:

• Creative: Some Tonies allow you to create and upload your own recorded audio content, such as parents reading a favorite story or singing a favorite song. 
• Story: The majority of Tonies come with their own stories that the Toniebox plays aloud. Some stories also include songs.
• Music: Some Tonies only play music where kids can sing along. Some music Tonies play lullabies and bedtime songs instead.

Tonie characters

Some Tonie characters are generic, such as puppies, kitties, pigs, or squirrels. These characters are part of the story, so it’s easier for kids to remember which story goes with which Tonie.

Other Tonies consist of popular characters, such as Eloise, Arthur, Blue, Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, and Daniel Tiger. Some well-known book series, like Diary of a Wimpy Kid, have Tonies available, too.

Licensed characters from movie and TV franchises, such as Despicable Me, are available. Multiple Disney movie characters are also available as Tonies, such as those from movies like Cars, Toy Story, Finding Nemo, and Frozen.

MyTonies app

The best way for parents to control their Tonieboxes is by downloading and using the free MyTonies app. This app is available for both iOS and Android devices.

Parents can manage the Wi-Fi connections for the Toniebox, see the Tonies they purchased previously, set volume limits, and record their own audio when using a creative Tonie.

How much do Tonieboxes cost?

Beyond the cost of the Tonieboxes, you have costs for other accessories and items.

Inexpensive

The least expensive items are the Tonies, which cost $10 to $15 apiece. This purchase includes a small figurine and the story that goes with it. Replacement charging stations fit in this price point, too, and they cost about $15.

Mid-range

Accessories for Tonieboxes fit in the mid-range price point. Specially designed headphones that work with Tonieboxes are available in a range of colors with Tonie characters on them and cost about $30. Carrying cases and bags available in multiple colors with various Tonie characters printed on them range from $15 to $40.

Expensive

The Tonieboxes themselves are the most expensive items in the Toniebox world. The majority of Tonieboxes ship with at least one starter character and story. These boxes typically cost $100 to $160, depending on the number of characters and stories included.

Tips for troubleshooting Tonieboxes

Although the Toniebox toy is pretty easy to set up and use, you may experience occasional issues. Whether the Toniebox is not playing audio or you simply can’t control it, you can try these troubleshooting tips.

• Volume problems: If you have no sound from the Toniebox, pinch the larger ear on top of the box to increase the volume. If a child bends or pushes the ear, it could suffer damage, causing a volume malfunction. 
• Limiting volume: If you prefer to use a quieter maximum volume with your Toniebox, you can create a volume limit setting in the app.
• Blue flashing light: A blue flashing LED on the Toniebox indicates it’s trying to find a Wi-Fi connection. The light turns green when the Toniebox finds a successful connection. If you’re struggling to make a connection to Wi-Fi, check the app.
• Missing content: If your child turns the Toniebox upside-down while it’s charging and pinches both ears for 10 seconds, it may erase all stored content and restart the Toniebox. To restart the Toniebox without erasing content, take it off the charger before turning it upside-down and pinching both ears.
• Toniebox speaks the name of an animal: When you hear a type of animal spoken aloud while Toniebox is operating, this is an error code. Look up the animal name in the app or on the Toniebox website to determine the error that’s occurring. 
• Toniebox won’t operate when disconnected from the charging station: Most of the time, this problem occurs when the Toniebox’s battery is not fully charged. However, it also could indicate a defective battery, a defective charging station, or a defective charging port.

More than 600 different Tonie characters are available from the company.

FAQ

Q. How does the Toniebox work?

A. The Toniebox doesn’t make use of screens or buttons, so it may confuse some people as to how to operate the machine. However, the box has other ways of increasing volume and fast-forwarding through stories and songs. Learning the different means of controlling the box only takes a little practice for kids and parents. The MyTonies smartphone app offers parents some control options, too.

Q. Does the Toniebox need new batteries?

A. The Toniebox has a rechargeable battery, so you simply charge it through the charging station. There’s no need to change out the batteries.

Q. How long do Tonie stories last?

A. Each Tonie story or music collection lasts anywhere from 15 to 50 minutes. Remember, some Tonies have stories only, some have music only, and some have music and stories together. A story may only last five or 10 minutes on a particular Tonie, with the remainder of the runtime consisting of songs, for example. The product description for each Tonie should list its total runtime.

Q. Can a child use any headphones with the Toniebox?

A. Most wired headphones work with Tonieboxes, but wireless earbuds or headphones do not. As long as the wired headphones can plug into the standard headphones jack on the box, they should work. Using headphones allows kids to listen quietly without disturbing others. Remember that the entire Toniebox design functions as a speaker when headphones aren’t in use.