Review

Glee Karaoke

Common Sense Media says

Fun app lets Gleeks sing with perfect pitch; privacy iffy.
Age
13
Quality
 
Learning
2
  • Ease of use3
    As long as kids are familiar with the songs, it's a cinch for them to sing along. The app provides lyrics and a vocal guideline for singers to follow, and even applies pitch correction if needed. The app's navigation isn't always intuitive.
  • Violence0
    The songs kids can listen to (or purchase to sing along with) don't tend to have particularly violent content, but it's possible that a singer will ad lib violent lyrics or include comments with references to violence.
  • Sex2
    Some of the additionally purchased songs contain suggestive lyrics. Kids can listen to other performances of these songs, even if they don't purchase the songs themselves.
  • Language4
    Some of the additionally purchased songs contain iffy language. Kids can listen to other performances of these songs, even if they don't purchase the songs themselves. And even though the versions the app's versions of the songs don't have anything much iffier than "hell" or "damn," during our review, we heard uses of "f--k" and the "N" word. Listeners can flag performances and comments to report abuse.
  • Consumerism5
    Tied into the Glee TV show. The app comes with two free songs, and additional songs must be purchased for $1 or $2 each. Kids are encouraged to collect tokens to use toward buying songs; they earn tokens by leveling up, winning contests, or interacting with ads and offers. For example, kids can earn two tokens for watching a video ad for a poker app.
  • Drinking, drugs, & smoking2
    Some song lyrics include reference to drinking.
  • Privacy & safety2
    Several privacy concerns. Players can connect through Facebook, create a username that is shared with others, and display a picture as their profile icon. Once you're logged in through Facebook there's no easy way to log out and remove your photo. They can post their performances for all the app's users to hear. They can also leave comments; some users will leave contact info in comments (Skype, for example). If enabled, the app will detect the user's location and broadcast it to other players as a dot on a world map. Users can opt out of this feature.
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What parents need to know

Parents need to know that Glee Karaoke was created to let fans of the Glee TV show sing along with songs from the show. The app presents some privacy concerns parents should be aware of. For example, kids' profiles can include a username, general location on the map, and a photo if they log in through Facebook. Once they log in through Facebook there's no easy way to disconnect and remove your photo. Singers can share their performances with app users around the world, receive comments (which are sometimes critical), leave comments for others, and share their general location. The songs available through the app may have some suggestive themes, but it's users' performances where kids may encounter more serious issue with language.

 
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This review of Glee Karaoke was written by

Most useful reviews by all members

Teen, 13 years old
July 25, 2010
9
OK for kids & up
 
Fun app is much safer than the show
Violence: None Sex: In some lyrics but they are tame Language: H-ll and d-mn are used in one song It uses facebook and you can invite your friends, you also get on a globe thing but its IMPOSABLE to tell where someone is
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