Playaway Takes Audio Books to the Next Level {Review}

I received the products below to review in exchange for sharing my honest opinion.

When I was younger I remember sitting on the floor with my little cassette player listening to audiobook after audiobook.  Back then we didn’t have cartoons or tablets or smartphones, everything was simple.  When I look at my own kids, yes they are spoiled, technology has definitely come a long way for them.

Well now there is a way for my kids to listen to audiobooks anytime and anywhere, without a smartphone or mp3 player.  Since they don’t make cassettes or cassette players anymore and CDs are way too fragile for kids, I was super excited to check out Playaway all-in-one products.  I got the chance to check out both an all-in-one audiobook player and a pre-loaded video player.  My kids were super excited when they say them.  Simple yet perfect for their needs.

The Playaway View is the first and only pre-loaded video player that can hold multiple hours of digital video content.  It is a simple, portable and durable device.  At first I wasn’t sure about this because it is pre-loaded with certain videos that I couldn’t change (I received a Sesame Street one) but really that is all I needed!  My just about 3 year old absolutely loves her new tablet, which is what she calls it even though it is not a tablet.  No Internet browsers or apps, just push Play! The screen is 3.5” inches and is a full color LCD screen that is shatter-resistant perspex. I will say my daughter has dropped this a few times inside and it is tough.  The battery inside is an internal lithium-polymer battery that lasts over 8 hours of continuous play, or you can plug it in with the included charger.

Honestly, the Playaway View cannot get any easier to use!  Just turn it on and push Play, no Internet connection required or updates to do.  My daughter can actually do it herself!  She carries this around everywhere with her and honestly I feel better her not only watching this (since its Sesame Street) but also handling this rather than one of our way more expensive tablets.  She will probably get sick of these videos eventually since its the same videos and only 2 hours worth of them before she has to re-watch them, but so far she doesn’t mind watching them over and over.  She thinks she is cool sitting with this in her room, just like her brothers do with their tablets.  This is a device you would find at your local library to check out and I can’t wait to see if our library carries them!  Oh and there are tons more titles than just Sesame Street, there are ones from all different book genres.

The picture really is good, I just couldn’t capture a good one of it with my camera (and my daughter of course didn’t want to share):

This is her at naptime watching it – me not realizing she had it until I checked the baby monitor:

Here is the charger you get with it:

The Playaway all-in-one audiobook I received was “Clifford The Big Red Dog and Other Clifford Stories.  Yes there are tons other titles available for both kids and adults.  This is probably the simplest way to listen to an audiobook.  It is a portable device that offers grab and go convenience for anyone wanted an audiobook to listen to.  It is pre-loaded with High Definition audio content and features a large backlit LCD screen to see where you are at with the book.  There is no video on this nor does it require an Internet connection.  Just turn it on and push Play!  You can hit the button to go to the next or previous book/chapter or change the narration speed, but that is pretty much it.  Like I said this is a simple device but surprisingly my kids enjoyed it.  My 5-year-old who has never heard an audiobook but knows Clifford actually sat and listened to the whole set of content, which was a few stories.  It does not come with headphones and it runs on one AA battery.  This again is something that libraries carry for the patrons, as it would be expensive to keep buying them for yourself, and I can’t wait to see if my library carries more of these.

Overall, Playaway is a company I never heard of before but I love the simplicity of their products.  While I probably won’t be buying one of these each time I want to read (or listen I should say) a book, I do love that they can be found at libraries.  More than 4 million Playaways are currently circulated in over 30 thousand schools, libraries, and military installations across the country and abroad. If my library does not carry them, I will definitely be mentioning it.

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