Roblox ‘like a poster child for unsafe’ says Nex Playground president as company’s kid-friendly console arrives in UK | Tech Radar
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Exclusive: Roblox ‘like a poster child for unsafe’ says Nex Playground president as company’s kid-friendly console arrives in UK
The Nex Playground was built with parents, and privacy, in mind
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The Nex Playground is a kid-friendly console that's pitched as a safer alternative to giving children access to tablets or traditional gaming devices. It launched in the US in December 2023, and ahead of its UK release I spoke with Nex's bosses about the product's privacy features, technical specs, and the company's success so far.
They also had plenty to say about the current offerings for younger gamers, with Tom Kang, the company's president and head of international, describing popular platform Roblox as "like a poster child for unsafe".
The Nex Playground is a locked-down ecosystem that offers more than 60 games designed specifically with ages three to 12 in mind. Outfitted with a wide-field-of-view camera, it relies on intuitive motion controls detected via video and processed entirely on the device.
Nex CEO David Lee told me that creating something that parents are comfortable giving their children is the company's "number one" concern. "No video [is sent to a] central cloud. Everything is local. This is a closed system, and we're not allowing third-party things," he explained. "There's no browser, [...] the library is curated."
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Lee also argued that the company's business model differs from most device manufacturers, which means it can more closely align with what parents want. Early on in their life cycles, some tablets, and many games consoles, are sold at slim margins or even a loss, with vital further revenue generated via the subsequent sales of software and advertising data.
The relatively modest technical specs of the Playground suggest that it's sold with healthy margins from the get go, removing the need for Nex to claw back profit elsewhere. A library of five games is included with the initial purchase, while a budget-friendly subscription called the Play Pass enables users to access a rapidly growing selection of additional titles — and covers the costs of future game development.
"We are not trying to offer in app purchases, or sell ads," Lee said. "We're not trying to sell a new game and, you know, in a way we leave a lot of money on the table."
The Nex Playground comes bundled with a camera cover for added peace of mind. (Image credit: Future)
Lee thinks that this approach is worth it, and will set the company up for success in the long run. "We only have a business if parents are resolving their problems, and stay with us for very long time," he told me. "We need to build that trust, because that is core of the whole model of how this works."
It's a message that's clearly resonating with parents in the US, where the Nex Playground has steadily grown from shipping just 5,000 units in late 2023 to almost 700,000 last year. The product even made headlines when it outsold Sony's Play Station 5 Slim Digital Edition system for a week in November 2025 (per Circana Retail Tracking Service data).
"We managed to do something that people feel could not be done for a long time," added Lee. "There's been no new entrant to the market in over 20 years, and we managed to break through. We had to bring back some of the basics and keep our motivation pure."
The console's success comes at a time where parents worldwide have been growing increasingly concerned about the safety of their kids online. In the UK, Roblox is the most popular gaming platform among the eight to 12 age demographic, but has been said to "pose real risks to children's safety" by online safety experts due to the apparent possibility of them encountering inappropriate content and communicating with adults online.
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It hosts million of games made by other Roblox players, and offers the tools required for users to create their own. It's owned by Roblox Corporation, a publicly listed company that's worth more than $30 billion.
While Kang revealed that he respected the recent introduction of age-based accounts and enhanced parental controls, he described retrofitting safeguarding systems like that as "the worst thing you could do to a business."
"They're a publicly traded company, we never want to get there. We want to grow and build that trust that gets stronger over time," he added. "That's why gradual growth is very good, because it allows you to make incremental improvements with trust and safety in mind. Not, 'hey I need 10 million users next week.'"
For its part, a Roblox representative told us that safety is a priority for the platform, and pointed to its many safeguarding features. These include the rollout of mandatory facial age estimation technology earlier this year (a first for a gaming platform of its size), that new age-based account system, and a suite of parental controls.
Although it offers chat functionality, it is monitored with filters that aim to block sensitive information and detect attempts to move conversations to other platforms. The company also assists law enforcement as appropriate.
Pre-orders for the Nex Playground start in the UK on May 18 for £269, with the console available at Amazon, Argos, and Smyths Toys. Those in the US can pick one up now for $299 at retailers including Amazon and Best Buy.
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Dash is an experienced tech journalist who specializes in video games, electronic entertainment products, and the wider industry that surrounds them. He currently serves as the Gaming Editor at Tech Radar, leading our review, preview, feature, and news coverage of the latest and greatest releases.
Before joining the team, he was Contributing Writer at PLAY (formerly Official Play Station Magazine UK) and has written articles for many of the UK's other biggest gaming magazines including the likes of Edge, PC Gamer, and SFX.
Now, when he's not getting his greasy little mitts on the newest hardware or gaming gadget, he can be found listening to J-pop or feverishly devouring the latest Nintendo Switch otome.
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