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Skylight Buddy Review (2026): Kid Routines Just Got Easy
Like many 4-year-olds, my son is stubborn. He'll do his best to distract and resist basic activities, like getting in the bath, brushing his teeth, and lying down for bed. The Skylight Buddy—the new kids’ device from the makers of the popular digital calendar—promised to engage him and keep him on a schedule without me needing to nag.
I was dubious that the Skylight Buddy could make good on its claims. The device is designed for kids 4 to 10, and because my son only recently turned 4, I figured he'd probably still be a little young for it. Also, regardless of age, empowering little kids to autonomously stick to their routines and chores is a tall order. However, after almost two weeks of testing, my son has been so excited to use this device and complete the tasks it shows him.
The Skylight Buddy works by reminding my son of his morning and evening routines, like brushing his teeth. It uses both words and picture icons, which is crucial because he can't read yet. Now, his favorite part of the day is when the device congratulates him on his completed tasks at bedtime. While some features are paywalled, you don’t absolutely have to subscribe for your kids to enjoy the Skylight Buddy. Plus, there's no microphone or camera in the device, making it a safe addition for a kid's bedroom. It also works seamlessly with Skylight's digital calendars if you happen to already use one in your home.
The Skylight Buddy sits at just under 7.5 inches tall, with a 1024 x 600 resolution touchscreen. It has a big, yellow half-circle “select” button and volume controls on the top. There are two speakers (one on each side of the device), and the bottom base doubles as a dim night-light. The only other included piece is a power cord that isn't particularly long, so you'll need to place it on a tabletop near an outlet in your child's room. You can also add on a silicone case ($20) if you're worried about your kid knocking it off the table (or you want to give it a pop of color, as the cover comes in purple, green, and blue, while the device itself only comes in white).
For setup, you’ll use the Skylight app, which is the same one you'd use if you have Skylight's digital calendars or photo frames. The Buddy has its own section of the app, separate from the calendar. But because I also use the calendar, my son’s tasks from the Buddy appear in both the general Skylight menus and the specific Buddy menu. Every to-do I've created for my son lives in the Tasks section, and when I created each item, the app had me choose whether the task in question was a chore or routine. Chores have many details you can fill in; you can also mark them as up for grabs if you’re happy for any family member to complete them. Routines let you choose how often a specific routine should repeat and what time of day it should happen.
I focused on routines for my 4-year-old, since I’m not ready to track chores for him. He likes to help flip the laundry loads and “wash” the dishes (mainly spray them with water, but he does get most of the food off!), though for now, I’m more interested in him building consistent habits. The routines I created pop up on the screen under “Morning” and “Evening,” but there’s also an “Afternoon” option for routines you assign for that time of day.
The Buddy also has sound machine and wake-up features, plus a little night-light at the bottom of the device. You'll set this up in the app under the Sleep & Wake menu, which lets you add sleep sounds and a night-light for bedtime, along with a morning alarm. I tried these features, but they’re not ultimately going to replace the Hatch Baby in my son’s routine. The Buddy’s sound options are more limited and not as nice as the music from the Hatch Baby. And not only is the night-light dim, but my son looks forward to his Hatch turning green when it's time for him to wake up. Still, the Buddy has a nice set of options if you need a sound machine or an alarm clock for your kiddo.
I didn't think my son would