BOB - Screen Time Manager - Manage Your TV Time | List Price: $99.99
Discount Price: $99.00
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Platform: Xbox 360
Brand: Hopscotch
Binding: Electronics
Release Date: 2006-08-08
Features: - Simple 3-minute set up
- 6 unique user accounts
- Safe for all electronics
- Kid-safe and tamperproof
- Reduces screentime=better health & better grades
Outstanding Media Management Tool~! [Posted on 2008-02-09]
The Bob Screen Time Manager is just what it was promised to be. It works great~! My 16 year old son has NOT been able to circumvent the system and it has delivered just what was promised: more time for family and studies and more control over media time for our teens. Best product I've purchased on the internet in the last two years.
Perfect Problem Solver [Posted on 2008-03-08]
We ordered Bob to help control TV watching time for our son. What a great product! Now we are not the bad guys yelling to turn off the TV. Bob is very easy to use, and we had it up and running in about 5 minutes. Programming is very intuitive and the directions for use are pretty clear. (You do have to log out of the device to turn it off, not just turn off the TV.) The device blends in with the other electronics on our entertainment center, so there's no embarrassment factor when his friends come over. It has done a great job of limiting time and is flexible--it is easy to add extra time when watching a favorite film and to change programming. I love Bob!
Bob worked great ! [Posted on 2008-03-10]
BOB has brought peace in our house when it comes to watching TV. Our 2 kids would watch TV as soon as they came home from school to "unwind", but it was very difficult to get them to shut it off and start homework. Even when it was possible the kids would be in a whiny mood which made studying difficult. Our kids are old enough (10 & 12) that once you left the room for a few minutes they would stop the homework, walk into the room with the TV, & turn it back on. Finishing their homework got later into the evening specially when there was extra curricular activities that night (volleyball, karate, or Cub Scouts).
We purchased two BOBs (one for each TV) and they are pretty simple to set up. BOB controls the power to the TV set. So first you unplug your TV from the outlet and connect it into the small plastic power box attached to BOB. Then lock it with the key & put the key away somewhere safe. The BOB power cord is now plugged into the wall. Next, set a 4 digit master password for you, & set the current day & time. Then set a 4 digit password for each child, the amount of time each child can watch TV & "blocks" which are times when they cannot watch TV. You can limit any user's time by day or by week, but not both. For example, we allow 1 hour of TV per day in the living room and have blocked TV from 3:30 pm to 6:00 pm. on school days because that is homework time. Since they can't watch TV when they come home from school they have figured out they might as well get their homework done then. On weekends they can watch 2 hours of TV each day. There is an audible warning that starts when 60 seconds of time are left.
BOB has helped to reduce the stress tremendously in our family & overall we are happy with it. It only took about 10 minutes to set up and everything is menu driven on a 4 line LCD display. You use the arrow keys, enter button, and numbers to enter the info. You can also add or subtract time on the fly using "fly time". Basically while your son or daughter are watching TV you touch a special key sequence, enter the master password, and enter or subtract time in 15 minute increments.
One minor grip is that I wish it was more flexible. For example, if we want to keep our current TV limits until 6 pm on school night it worked fine, but if our son is done with his homework early and wants to watch TV at 5:00 it's not easy to do this. You cannot user "fly time" because the user must be logged on to BOB, and they cannot log on since the time is blocked. The only way I found was to use by master password to turn it on for him.
Here's the link to the user manual if interested http://usebob.com/pdfs/BOBUserManual.pdf
Bob helps regain our family! [Posted on 2008-04-05]
Since installing Bob on our TV, my kids have learned to respect
their allotted TV/video time. Previously, "2 hours" would turn into much longer on the weekends. Now, each one has their own time slot.
Very easy to use, very easy to program, can have multiple users, doesn't just "let you in" if the power is cut (unplugged or power outage) -- you have to use the master account if the power is out.
Very straightforward to use. Even my husband, the TV addict, does not complain about it being in place. Very nice to be able to control usage.
Buying our 3rd "Bob" [Posted on 2008-06-19]
The best product I ever tried for controlling my kids' screen time was "EyeTimer" which inexplicably went out of business. Bob is a worthy substitute - but whereas EyeTimer let me set up a single "screen" budget for each child for 2 TVs and 1 gaming system, I need a "Bob" for each device and have to manage time on each of them. (Eyetimer also had a "homework" mode that let kids use the computer for homework without charging their "playtime" budget and kept track of what they did to make sure there was no playing when they were supposed to be working.)
We have 2 "Bobs" - one for the family TV and one for the small TV my 10- and 13-year-old boys use for gaming. My kids have really learned how to budget their "screen" time. We use a weekly allowance that is split between the gaming Bob and the TV Bob. I'm back to buy a 3rd Bob b/c my 13-year-old figured out he could move the Wii into my bedroom when I'm not home! They won't even have pin numbers on that one.
With Bob, the kids know exactly how much time they've used and how much they have left. I have set up blocks for times they shouldn't be on screens and I have one pin number that only works on Saturdays from 7-11 PM - so it's only used when my oldest is sitting for his younger brother and they're allowed to watch a movie. They also know that I can take away Bob time for bad behavior, or reward them with "fly time" as either a special "bonus" or because there are 10 minutes left in a show they are watching.
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