Caribu by Mattel Reviews

by Anklefxrecovery

The kids like using Caribu with Grandparents even though when they use it between Caribu on an iPad to the grandparent’s computer the coloring or circling of items didn’t show up correctly on both platforms. This afternoon my daughter used it with a friend who is on quarantine from school. It was great for the first 20-30 min but then the calls kept dropping (four times)and they ended up frustrated so they just ended the call. This also happened when we were using the free version so we thought the free version may have had a time limit, but now we have the paid version and the same thing happened. So now I don’t have an explanation. Love the concept but so far with the glitches we aren’t sure if we will continue paying for Caribu .

by Nilayp

I love the idea of Caribu, especially during the pandemic. Grandparents can enjoy time with the kids while the parents get a break.

But... both the kids and the grandparents can control what activity to do. And our four year old can’t commit to anything for more than 30 seconds. She is constantly changing the book, the picture and the game. The whole thing turns into a scribble session while grandma can’t get her bearings.

If they added a small feature to prevent the child from controlling the activity... Caribu would be priceless. I’d pay double for just this feature. Until then- all I can do is wait for her to grow up. :(

by Acorn1028

Nice idea but the cons make me think I will be canceling our subscription after the month. Our 6 year old loves tic tac toe and the scavenger hunts. That being said....here are the negatives which make me happy I didn’t sign up for a whole year:
1. While trying it for free things moved fine but now that I’ve paid for a month there’s a significant lag between selecting something and getting it to open.
2. There’s no way to remove my picture. Since the pictures take up space, often needing to be moved so I can read the story, I would like the option of not seeing myself. It seems this should have been addressed long before now.
3. Some of the stories are too long, too detailed, or contain some content we would not want to explore while reading a story from a distance so we try and prescreen the stories and put them in our favorites. The kids can’t see those favorites on their screen however. It would be nice if we could just pull that screen up so they could choose what book they want to hear.

by Girl Who Reviews

The idea of Caribu is fantastic, however the execution is rather shaky. Caribu crashes and lags all the time, even if I’m just exploring Caribu by myself. Also sometimes Caribu does not sync correctly between both parties, my screen showed a completely different coloring page than what the other party had on their screen.
Lastly, when I finish a book/coloring page and back out of it, I notice I am brought back to the start page. I wish I was brought back to the exact position I was at before I clicked on the coloring page/book because I have to re-scroll to get to where I was. I found this especially irksome as I was exploring Caribu and was clicking on stories to ‘heart’ them and when backing out, I was brought back to the start page and instead of where I left off and had to keep re-scrolling through everything to get back to where I was. I hope the developers will be able to fix these hiccups to reach the potential I know Caribu has. Stay safe everyone!

by Ny Mom Jojo

When playing a game like dots or tic tac toe with a family member over voice call, lines we draw don’t match with those on the other persons screen. I am probably not describing that clearly but it was impossible to play together. We had to use the blank draw space to do anything that was synced up. Even reading a book together, the pages we saw did not match the page viewed on the other persons screen. They were a page ahead. When they tried swiping to the previous page, it turned our page too. Very frustrating. If this didn’t happen, Caribu would be incredible.

by Bkringel

I purchased a subscription to this app about six months ago. My four year old grand daughter lives about 700 miles from me. We both love playing on Caribu together. I just got done playing with her for a solid hour. We read books (she is loving the Angelina books and the Beatrix Potter) then we always play round after round of Memory - usually followed by some coloring pages and tic tac toe. Thanks for giving us a fun way to be together. (I think it is also helpful at times to keep her occupied when mom or dad need to get something done.)

by Me1010101010101010

this app helped build the relationship between my kids and their grandparents. My kids’ grandparents live in Virginia and would only get to “see” their grandkids once every few weeks when when set up FaceTime calls. I could tell that my kids were getting bored quickly and didn’t really want to have the same “How are you doing? How’s school?” conversation every time so we looked for a more fun way to make calls to grandma and grandpa. That is when we found this app. It completely changed the conversations my kids got to have with their grandparents! They started reading books together and talking about the adventures that Thomas the Train and Barbie were going on and what book they wanted to read next. My kids now want to call “Grammy and Poppy” multiple times a week. My parents love using this app and getting to read and play play games with their grandkids. They now get to see each other multiple times a week instead of just for holidays! Thank you this app for bridging the gap between generations!

by Grannygrateful

I love coloring with my grandkids but because of COVID I can’t visit and color with them in person anymore. I started buying two coloring books and sending one to my house and one to my grandchild’s house and we would color together on FaceTime. It was a terrible experience because we couldn’t see each other’s drawings. My doctor told me about this app and it has totally changed our experience! Now we both color on the same page in the video call AND I don’t have to keep buying two coloring books! Thank you this app. Very grateful granny!

by LMcKel

Caribu has been incredible and we have only had it for three days. We live far from family and our 7yo got bored with regular FaceTime. My mom saw this on the Today show and asked us to look it. We used the free trial and my mom and daughter played and talked for nearly 90 minutes! They have used it at least once a day (usually twice) and go until the first person’s battery almost dies. It is amazing to hear them playing and laughing while discovering new games and ways to play. If you live far from family, I highly suggest Caribu!

by LCA's Mimi

I live in a different state from my grandkids, and use Caribu at least twice a week with my 7 year old granddaughter. We read books, color, and play games. Since she is learning to read, she likes to sound out some of the words. We both look forward to these sessions, and she will continue until I have to go or her parents tell her it is time to stop. This summer my granddaughter and her 9 year old brother stayed with me for a week, and used Caribu every night to read with their parents. The kids enjoy it so much more than a phone call or even FaceTime.

by LoyalTee16

My 4 year old boy and I love Caribu. It is so perfect for many reasons, especially now during COVID. I have it on both my phone and my iPad, so when I’m not home, I can video with my boy and we can either read or play together. I’m trying to figure out how to get the memorial discount, and could use some help. But other than that, there is not 1 thing that my little one, the 6 people I got to download it and join as well, or myself, do not like about Caribu. We all find it to be PERFECT. Thank you very much for creating such a useful and wonderfully awesome app with mainly kids in mind.

by Grandma LOVES To Read

this app is the answer to my prayers! My grandchildren live out of the country due to my son’s employment. My 4 yo granddaughter loves to chat online, but this genius app lets us read awesome books and play some really great games together. She even tries to read to me some of the easier books. With the 2 way video, we can expand the camera to a full page and she can show me what she did at school and new dances she learned. She is getting quite computer savvy because of Caribu which was an unexpected surprise. She can navigate all over the place and I didn’t teach her. I tried another similar app, but the books were lousy and we were limited to 20 minutes per month. It was also way more expensive. With this app, we can read several days a week and not fixate on the time. I am getting to watch her grow up and don’t feel so far away. this app is worth every dollar and I would pay more. I hope they keep adding new things for those of us who are super users! Many thanks to the developers for your creative app!!

by Joan The Grandma

Thank you, thank you, thank you! My seven year old grandson and I have been reading books and doing activities together using this app since June and I just love it and so does he! I have a chronic lung condition, so in this time of COVID19, I can’t interact with him in person, so this app has enriched both of our lives. After we read, we visit a little and I feel like he knows I care and that I’m thinking about him. The only down side is -no hugs!!😋
Because my eyesight isn’t the best, I had trouble reading some of the words in the books on my iPhone. I am now the proud owner of a new iPad! So I’m thinking Apple thanks you as well!

by Joulesanne

I signed up for the 1 week trial and we all enjoyed it so much I have signed up for a month.

Our littlest grandkids live in NC and we are retired and currently full time in our RV traveling the country. They are 9, 6, and 3. Mommy home schools them. What a rich resource Caribu can be!

The Tracing feature will help the 6 yr old with writing her alphabet. The games help the two “bigs” with critical thinking and are just fun to play. The littlest loves stories but there are Eve activities he likes to do with coloring, picture matching and alphabets.

I have sent the link for Caribu to my friend who lives in FL. She has grandkids in FL and in CA, cousins who don’t really know each other. How fun could it be if the cousins could play games or read together?

I have sent the link to Caribu to my daughter’s friend in CA with thoughts that maybe their kids can read and play games together.

Have sent the link to my other daughter in hopes she will want to join the family to read a book or play a game.

I’m excited, can you tell? 😀

by Me On 28th

Our grandbabies live 1800 miles and two time zones away. We, the grandparents, both still work. To be able to have the opportunity to read to the two year old and eventually, his baby sister is very important to me. Even traveling twice a year to see them is not enough time and having Caribu helps. Yes, it is not the same as having them in my lap (I’m not sure why people love to point that out, it seems cruel) but they know my voice, my face and my expressions and I theirs, and that is a blessing. I especially like the little “circles” that each of us can use to “point” to things on the page. He’s catching on to that already. Thank you.

by D Rump

Caribu is so perfect for my 4 year-old daughter who LOVES reading and being read to. Her father is deploying for the third time in her lifetime, and staying connected is so important. Finding this app has been an exciting opportunity for her and her dad to stay in touch with video chats while reading and playing games. It’s so great that they can still do some of her favorite things together while he’s overseas. Caribu will help her stay engaged with him and help to strengthen their bond. Also great to play with cousins and friends that we’ve had to move away from over the years. We are also so honored that this app offers free and unlimited lifetime subscriptions to currently serving US military families.

by Zachkrasman

I really do love Caribu; it keeps my family and my kids in touch over many thousands of miles. My biggest complaint is that when you call somebody or they call you it doesn’t show you the call screen like other video or calling apps do, it just shows a drop-down notification which is confusing for my parents and grandparents. The video chat functionality is also not up to par with other apps. When transitioning out of a current story to go find other stories there is a lag and choppiness to the video feed, and it becomes hard to communicate for a few seconds until it clears up. Please update this and will definitely be a 5-star app!

by Corolla17

When we were a month or so into the pandemic and I was missing my grandkids something fierce, my daughter heard about this app. I signed up quickly, and suddenly I was totally reconnected to them and became part of their nighttime routine. At first I was choosing the books, but soon the kids felt the power from their end and chose the books. There are TONS to choose from. We would do four every night. this app was so generous during the summer that they suspended paid subscriptions as we all were navigating this unchartered territory. I am more than happy to pay now and support this company. My grandkids love this app and I have told so many people about it. Finally, the customer service is amazing. They respond so quickly--answering questions and offering quick support. Five stars, easily.

by Kimberlie Malone

Not only did we update it but we had to then delete it and download and install it again. I could manage this but my son’s great grandmother had a world of a time trying to do this on her own with me on the phone. After 15 minutes of this, we were finally able to call except it dropped the video calls for no reason! Every 4-6 minutes or 2-3 minutes it would just crash. Whatever you did to fix some bugs you created a LOT more because I didn’t even notice bugs prior to being forced to update it. This is supposed to be easy for grandparents and children. Today it was just a headache. If you actually fix this I’ll change my review but this issue is absurd. Forcing people to uninstall and reinstall for an app to work after an update? No thanks.

by Injustaminute

I don’t believe I had previously signed up for this service. I downloaded Caribu yesterday, tried to sign up and got a message that my email is in use by another account. So I tried to sign in, but every time I click “Forgot password?,” Caribu closes. It sounds like a great app but I can’t try it out due to this issue. UPDATE: Account issue was resolved. I used Caribu for the first time tonight US to Costa Rica. I must say that it was a great success. I think we read eight books! My granddaughter was begging for more but my voice was going. I have a feeling that we will be using this app multiple times a week. Such a great way to say connected! Thank you.

by Da Big Bad Wolf

For a higher priced subscription model, I wish the product was more reliable. You think they’d have better funding to employ a qualified team of engineers to maintain this almost decently executed idea.

Calling issues and freezing app bugs still prevail. After a month of spotty usability and unstable features, I’m likely cancelling my subscription before the billing cycle renews. I really had higher expectations for $9/month. Kind of disappointing.

by Hazeldad

This is a great way for parents and especially grandparents to connect with their grandchildren! It provides just that bit of structure and content to a phone conversation to completely change it and make it so much more.

Two things that I would like to see are a “Recent” or “Already Read” section so that it is easier to find books that we have already read but would like to revisit.

The second thing would be to poll subscribers for favorite titles and work aggressively to obtain them. Some of these may not be the current favorites, but they might be favorites for grandparents. All of the “Golden Books” come to mind along with everything by dr. Seuss. And of course books like Goodnight Moon or Runaway Bunny are essentials also.

The lack of really good titles has caused me to drop the rating to three stars from four.

by Rs22080

I tried Caribu to communicate with my 3 yo son while on an internship far from home. The idea is really cool. It had lots of bugs though. My son was really interested in coloring with me, but at times the color pallet would disappear and leave you to have to close the program and reopen it. This was very frustrating for a toddler. It resulted in tantrums and unpleasant video calls. We ultimately gave up using Caribu and settled for FaceTime. It wasn’t as fun, but it avoided the issues with the this app app.

by Ruta11

What a Scam! Do not buy Caribu. It is a piece of crap! You lurk people with 14 days free trial, then give them 3 options and nowhere is mentioned that lifetime subscription does not have a trial period! Omg! What a scam! You just charge money and do not stand behind the quality of this product!!! If you did, you would offer money back guarantee for 14 days like you promised! There was nowhere written that there is no trial period with life time subscription purchase! I downloaded Caribu, paid 99$ as I thought I had 14 days to cancel it if I don’t like it and not I’m stuck with this piece of vrap and big bill! Omg!

by Rocap1

Tested Caribu with my niece’s babies and we had a blast. I don’t get to spend time with them and doing this while on a video call promotes bonding time while enhancing creativity and learning. This generation of children are bound to learn more through interactive games. This is such a great creation.

by Lotsofsilver

Great concept of connecting face to face to enjoy with the children in your life!! Easy to use. Lots of books to read and activities that we weren’t able to do together because of distance. this app has changed that!! Connect and enjoy!!

by Edward C.1988

I am so great full for this app. My son and I read every night using this app and we’re in the same house! We were going to buy books but this is just an easier and funnier alternative. You can also play games together.
Great job with Caribu guys! Keep up the good work.

by Jgtabbert

My youngest daughter is in love with Caribu! I travel quite a bit and I love how it allows me to connect with her while I’m away. Her favorite feature is the ‘draw’ option where she can create and save her artwork. Excited to share this with friends and family.

by Thatgardentho

My mom and my youngest daughter use Caribu for bedtime stories. We love it and their ability to stay close despite the miles between them. We recently had a small problem and customer service went above and beyond to make sure the issue was resolved and that we were all happy. I can’t thank the developers enough for Caribu and all the love they put into it!

by Halfpike95

This Viedo chat app has it all. Over 2,000 popular book titles and fun games that focus on early learning and childhood development while video chatting at the same time. It seems to keep the little ones interested in video chatting and reading. Im surprised someone did not think of this sooner! Kids love it.

by Suz-Salas

I love Caribu! I travel for work more often than I would like and with three young boys don’t want to miss the special evening rituals of reading and interacting with my kids. My parents also use Caribu as it’s the easiest way for them to have a video chat with the kids without them losing interest or getting bored.

by Nana Suzie Q 11

I just finished with the focus group and downloaded Caribu. I have 2 grandchildren who live away from us but we FaceTime almost every day. I think Caribu is wonderful And that we will have so much educational fun on ft. Reading and drawing with the kids will bso productive amd I can’t wait to use Caribu with them tonight. I recommend this to anyone with grandchildren who live out of town .

by Mars_diva

Tested this with my granddaughter this evening. I like it, however I can’t see what she sees when we are in selection mode. Once she picks a story we can both see it and I can read it to her then we are both sharing the screen. It’s great and she enjoyed it. Her first reaction was can we do this again on Friday tomorrow? She also asked where are you Grandma? I love Caribu! Great idea, if live to invest but I don’t have the $500 to do so. But it’s definitely worth it!

by LJ In PA

Just used this app for the first time and was so impressed with the quality and variety of activities available to engage the grandkids. I think I had as much fun as they did! Will definitely share with others and plan to utilize so cousins who live across the country can engage with each other as well. Excellent application for any friend/family member where distance keeps them apart from kids. I will also use locally when weather or other events prevent being there in person.

by Sayhi2thebunny

What a great app! My husband (deployed overseas) just got to read a bedtime story to our kids in an interactive way: it’s like Skype or FaceTime, both they and he can turn pages, and there are a ton of books to choose from including Usborne books (we love those).