Toniebox Alternative: This is how the cookie headphones do in comparison

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Cookie vs. Toniebox
Duel at ear level: Two audio systems for children in the sound check

The Toniebox has been winning children’s hearts for around seven years. The colorful Tonies are among the classic gifts. Can a cookie change that? We took a closer look at the cookies with the audio chips.

“Try it with comfort, with peace and comfort …” the cuddly bear Balu from the Jungle Book has been recommending to me for what feels like an eternity – at breakfast, on the way to daycare, in the garden and in the evening before going to bed. In between, Mogli’s animal best buddy tirelessly reminds me that I should now chase away everyday life and my worries. Our son now knows the song by heart. However, that doesn’t stop him from hitting the dancing Baloo over and over again on his beloved to provide the Toniebox. And if he can’t be found at short notice, Simba from the “Lion King” jumps in. The cube with the funny ears has been a hit among children’s jukeboxes for years.

He’s got some serious competition here at home. cookie is the name of the headphones that could outstrip the popular music cube. At least in our son’s world. In the style of a mini DJ, he has been playing with the for some time now sky blue cookie earphones on the eavesdroppers through the apartment. Even at dinner, the headphones are only put aside under protest. Of course, you have to take them with you on longer car trips. Just like the Toniebox. In terms of popularity and listening time, it’s going to be a draw at home.

Children usually apply different criteria when it comes to their toys. That’s why we looked at the two audio systems through adult glasses and compared them.

Kekzhörer vs. Toniebox: duel at ear level

Scope of delivery and accessories

At first glance, both systems are difficult to compare. We try anyway. While the Toniebox is all about the radio play cube with loudspeaker and two small ears, Kekz manages with headphones in which the audio player has been integrated. With the Tonie concept, the headphones are available as accessories in the same color as the Toniebox. With a 3.5 mm jack can be added next to the Tonie-Eavesdropper but also any other headphones can be plugged in. Cookie listeners don’t have to worry about cables – unless the battery is dead.

Scope of delivery Toniebox

Scope of delivery Cookie ear starter set

When it comes to accessories, Tonie has the eavesdroppers. This is also due to the history of the two companies. While the idea with the figures and the box came up in 2013 and was ready for the market three years later, Kekz was only founded in Munich in 2020. For example, Tonie has created a colorful range of accessories for his box and the now more than 400 radio play figures. These include the Tonie-Eavesdropperthe Tonie transporter, wall shelves in different sizes, a car organizer, covers, decorative foils and much more. So far, there is only one printed version of Kekz Cotton collection bag for stowing the handset and audio chips, which the children can carry as a backpack.

service

First of all, we note that both audio systems are recommended for children aged three and over. This makes it clear that both the Toniebox and the cookie receiver should be as easy and intuitive to use as possible. Is that you? Those who have impatient children initially have an advantage with the cookie earphones. Because here the radio play, the bedtime story or another audio file is in a small chip (approx. four centimeters in diameter), which fits exactly into the right earphone, can also be clicked in by children’s hands with a little practice and is held in place by a magnet becomes. It is controlled via the large Kekz button on the left earcup. Pressing this button once moves one title (chapter) forward. If you want to hear the last title again, you have to press the button twice. It only took our five-year-old son a few minutes to complete the few steps on his own. From our point of view, the Kekz founders have solved the important issue of volume very cleverly: This is adjusted using a somewhat hidden slide switch on the left earphone. The middle level should be around 75 dB. The children get a maximum of 85 dB on their ears – we mainly use that when driving. Even the quietest level is okay for children’s ears at 65 dB, as long as the ambient noise is kept within limits. To exchange the cookie, a light tap of the finger in the upper area is enough. The chip slips out of the earpiece via a simple tilting mechanism.

You need a little more patience (and above all an internet connection) to get the Toniebox up and running. Because the popular music cube must first be set up. That doesn’t work without the parents’ smartphone. Even later, every Tonie figure has to be registered in the “mytonies account” using a smartphone. Instead of a button, you control the audio content stored on the figures on the Toniebox by a courageous tap on the sides of the cube. Right goes forward, left goes back one title accordingly. The maximum volume can be limited – but only via the “mytonies” account. Using the almost legendary Tonie ears, the kids can then increase or reduce the volume in a self-explanatory manner.

sound

According to the target group, both manufacturers understandably did not focus primarily on the sound quality. Nevertheless, we like the sound of the cookie earphones a little better. This is probably due to the fact that Kekz is fully focused on the technology of the headphones and has placed more emphasis on the sound that resounds from the earpieces. The Tonie eavesdroppers are “only” an accessory for the Toniebox – and you can tell by the sound quality. What comes out of the box itself serves its purpose and is fine for children’s ears. But nothing more. It should be added here that the subjective impression is a little distorted when parents hear one or the other radio play played for the 43rd time.

Price

With an RRP of just under 70 euros, the cookie earphones are around 30 euros below the Toniebox starter set. For just under 100 euros, Tonie listeners can get a Tonie box and a so-called creative Tonie, which can be used individually. The second Tonie (e.g. for a sibling) costs just under 60 euros without a charging station and creative Tonie. In the Cookie starter pack puts an audio chip. In our case, that was a 64-minute radio play by the Cookie Crew called “Sprinkle in New York”. Including the collection bag, you get an initial investment of around 80 euros for the biscuit earphones. If you are satisfied with the Kreativ-Tonie alone, you pay 20 euros more. As a rule, however, the Tonie suitcase fills up quite quickly with different figures. They are designed with a lot of love. However, they also cost just under 17 euros per piece. In contrast, there’s a rather unspectacular cookie for twelve euros. And that brings us to the biggest weakness of both audio systems – at least from the customer’s point of view.

Both the Toniebox and the cookie receiver are self-contained systems that cannot be connected to “external” audio sources either via Bluetooth or in any other way. So once you decide on a system, it has to be the Tonies or the Kekze. From a marketing point of view, this is a clever move – as a customer, you should be aware of this before the Toniebox or the cookie earphones end up on the birthday table or under the Christmas tree.

Conclusion

Can the cookie jars hold a candle to the popular Toniebox? As for the sound, they actually convinced us. Where else do they score? It only takes a few seconds from unpacking to the first note. You don’t have to register anywhere or have a smartphone with a WiFi connection at hand. Speaking of wireless: In the Kekz cosmos, parents are not only left out when it comes to setting up. Cookie is wireless. The children can roam freely without leaving mom and dad in a loop with the stories of Robber Hotzenplotz or the little dragon coconut be sonicated.

On the other hand, the cookies are less suitable as an alternative to falling asleep. Here the Toniebox remains untouchable despite the manageable sound quality. Even with the sheer volume of radio plays, song stories and music, Kekz currently cannot match the Toniebox. The same applies to the wide range of accessories.

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