Head over heels in love with the new Kekzhörer
7/12/2021
Translation: machine translated
Tonie and Tigerbox have got competition: The new Kekz headphones are mixing up the sound party in the kids' room. My daughter has tested it - at first reluctantly, then enthusiastically.
Now she gets to test them. For two weeks, my daughter is putting the new wireless headphones for children over the age of three, which have been on the market since November, through their paces. It's called the Kekzhörer. The idea: children attach a round audio chip - a so-called "Kekz" - to the outside of the ear cup and can listen to a story or music.
Their own everyday lives inspired them to do this, say the two founders of the Munich-based start-up, two family men, on their website. "We wanted a solution for our kids that allows them to control their favorite content completely on their own - and as cellphone- and internet-free as possible."
As yet, my five-year-old tester knows nothing of her good fortune. I've promised her a surprise when she gets back from kindergarten. That's when the two-week practical test is supposed to start. I myself am acting as an assistant, observing, taking notes and asking questions.
Preparation is (not) everything
I am clever, I think to myself, and already prepare everything. If Madame Impatient only has to wait two minutes for the headphones to be put on, she's already not going to feel like it.
That wasn't so clever, I realize. In no time at all I have understood the principle of the new children's sound centre and the on-ear headphones are ready for the children's ears. Now I'm the one waiting impatiently - for the chief tester.
The Kekz system is insanely simple and explained with three dots on the packaging:
- Insert/remove audio chip to start/stop playback.
- Next track = press 1x on the ear cup, last track = press 2x.
- To change the chip, just press on the top of the kekz.
That's it. There is a slightly more detailed manual in the package, but I'll disregard it.
Few bells and whistles, lots of listening experience
In principle, the Kekz listener works much like the Toniebox we already have at home. Instead of little figures on the box, however, audio chips are now placed on the right earpiece. Conveniently, the audio play doesn't just start as soon as the headphones are switched on, but only when they are actually being used, i.e. sitting on the head.
With the Toniebox, I set the maximum volume in the accompanying app, with the Kekzhörer this is omitted: the volume is limited to 85 decibels suitable for children's ears and can be adjusted in three stages (65, 75 and 85 decibels) with a small switch. Choosing the Golden Mean.
The starter set comes with an introductory chip and a USB-C charging cable. A power adapter is missing, but it's not necessary: you can use any 5V plug. The manufacturer promises a battery life of 15 hours. He also sends along a large load of audio games and books for me to test. From "Conni" to "Barbie" to "Räuber Hotzenplotz" and "Sandmännchen", there's a lot in there - my daughter will be thrilled. I think.
The child refuses to work.
Wrong thought. Her delight when I present her with the "surprise" turns to anger within a millisecond when she learns that she gets to test the headphones but not keep them. "That's not a real surprise, I'm not doing that!" my daughter clarifies, running away and demonstratively giving her attention to her Tonie box.
The next day I make a second attempt, this time with success. Without resistance, she agrees to her new job and is delighted. I briefly explain to her how to use the magnetic cookies and how to switch between the tracks, and she intuitively figures out the rest. And she takes her job very seriously from then on.
The headphones stick to her head
For the rest of the day, she doesn't take the red cookie earpiece off her head. In the evening, she even falls asleep with it on: A few minutes after brushing her teeth, I find her slumbering in her bed, take the earpiece from her and put it on myself.
The sound quality amazes me, the "3D miracle sound", as the manufacturer calls it, is impressive. I hear the sound sometimes in the front, sometimes in the back, sometimes left, right, up and down. I'm also surprised by the fact that the headphones sit well and comfortably on my adult head. The size-adjustable headband is padded at the top. But now how can I adjust the three volume levels? Unfortunately, I can only adjust the small control above the left earcup when I take the receiver off my head.
The next morning, I hear my daughter singing "Bibi and Tina" in her room. She, who usually has trouble getting out of bed, is already awake before I wake her. And so she immediately puts on her headphones again. Beginner's luck, I think to myself. But I am admittedly amazed. It remains to be seen whether the test object will still be as exciting in a week's time.
Fragst du dich, wieso sich Peter Maffay im Youtube-Video herumtreibt? Der deutsche Rocksänger ist Investor des Kopfhörer-Start-ups. Deshalb gibt es auch dessen Märchenfigur Tabaluga als Kekz-Hörspiel.
Advantages and disadvantages of the Tonie and Tigerboxes
As expected, the initial euphoria wears off after a few days. In the meantime, there are headphone-free hours at home again. But not (yet) headphone-free days: at the latest in the evening before sleeping, my daughter lies down with a Kekz on her ear. One advantage over the Tonie and Tigerbox: the rest of the family doesn't have to listen to the story. That's another reason why the Kekz listener is so suitable for travelling, for example in the car. Of course, additional headphones could be purchased for the Tonie and Tigerbox, but you still have to carry the box with you.
One disadvantage of the cookie earphones is that they are linked to the audio chips. It is not possible to play other music or audio books. That's where the Tonies with their individually playable creative figures come in. And for the tiger box there are the tiger tickets, quasi a Abo for the entire Streaming offer with approximately 10,000 titles within a certain period.
In terms of price, the listeners are cheaper: the Starter Bundle costs 75.60 francs, the Toniebox 87.90, the Tigerbox 101 francs. When it comes to accessories - the audio games - the Kekze are in the middle of the pack: a chip is available for 13.90 francs, a Tonie figure for around 17 francs. The price of a Tigercard with a story varies between 10.50 francs and 24 francs.
Conclusion: "Mega cool
The boss can't decide whether she likes her Toniebox or the borrowed cookie listener better. "I would prefer to have both," she says with a puppy dog look. She rates the headphones as "mega cool," as well as the stories she got to test. But she would like to have an additional "creative chip" so she can listen to her own music - the children's animation radio from her last Italian holiday or the "Ice Queen" soundtrack.
The assistant sums up the experience of the two weeks of testing in pluses and minuses:
Plus
- Easy to use for children
- Sits comfortably on the head
- No cable, no additional device and therefore great for on the go
- No internet or Bluetooth necessary
- Good sound quality
- Long battery life: 15 hours are specified and are easily enough
Minus
- (Still) no self-recordable audio chips
- The three-stage volume control can only be adjusted when the earpiece is removed.
Maybe the cookie earpiece will even make it under our Christmas tree this year. Then as a "real surprise", as my five-year-old might say.
Katja Fischer
Senior Editor
Katja.Fischer@digitecgalaxus.chMom of Anna and Elsa, aperitif expert, group fitness fanatic, aspiring dancer and gossip lover. Often a multitasker and a person who wants it all, sometimes a chocolate chef and queen of the couch.