What do you think it's the appropriate time...? (1 Viewer)

[bulletproof]

What do you think it's the appropriate time for kids to get a mobile phone? And do you think it is ok for them to get expensive phones? I keep seeing really young kids with new generation phones and honestly, I think I wouldn't want my kid (when I will have one) to have the newest iPhone when he is 5. I'm happy I didn't have a phone until I was 8. And that wasn't a performant one, but I was home alone a lot so my parents wanted a way to call me. But otherwise, if I had the Snake game it was enough. I don't think it is safe for young kids to have expensive phones, they can lose them, get them stolen plus... internet is full of bs

 

[Mangoey]

I'd say late middle school or high school if they don't need one till then, but if they do need a phone for after school clubs or stuff, I may give them an inexpensive one.
Idk the image of super young kids with phones and ipads has always bothered me somewhat.

 

[lotusflower]

Well I didn't get my first phone until my freshman year in HS ( I'm in college now)

 

[bulletproof]

I'd say late middle school or high school if they don't need one till then, but if they do need a phone for after school clubs or stuff, I may give them an inexpensive one.
Idk the image of super young kids with phones and ipads has always bothered me somewhat.

same for me. I'd prefer them to enjoy playing with toys outside rather then playing different mobile games and getting +18 ads

 

[bulletproof]

Well I didn't get my first phone until my freshman year in HS ( I'm in college now)

that's a very appropriate time

 

[lotusflower]

that's a very appropriate time

That's a rule that my parents have, My younger sister won't get her phone until she starts high school

 

[Willow]

I had my first phone when I was 12-13 but it was not a good one

 

[VillageIdiot]

I got mine in middle school.
My brother's 5 and he just got a phone, granted there's no service

 

[bulletproof]

That's a rule that my parents have, My younger sister won't get her phone until she starts high school

fair enough

 

[bulletproof]

I had my first phone when I was 12-13 but it was not a good one

well good enough for its main purpose, calling

 

[bulletproof]

I got mine in middle school.
My brother's 5 and he just got a phone, granted there's no service

well that's still ok ig, probably he is playing stuff but it is easier to monitor what stuff

 

[Willow]

well good enough for its main purpose, calling

True but I had a game on it too

 

[nyaajooe]

i got mine when i was 8-9 but i think my opinion would be biased because i'm still technically a child.

 

[Tickita]

I'd say in high school. I didn't get a phone until the end of my senior year in HS.

 

[Mayday]

In my family, we all got one when we were about 15. I feel like that's a good age.

 

[daesuki]

I don't think i had a working phone until I was 18, I had a phone when I was 14 that allowed games and youtube, but that was all I was allowed.

I think that I'd give my child an unusable phone (like the one i had when i was 14) when they're old enough to be at home for longer than an hour. So id say around 8th grade. Id let them get a phone with mobile when they get a job.

 

[mysteric]

going into hs
maybe a flip phone or something that can only take calls two three years before that time

 

[Mew]

Well depends on the kid and the parent really.
I plan to buy my son a phone once he starts secondary school (so 11/12) and going to school alone as at the moment I take him to school and he doesn't go anywhere uncompanied by an adult (he's 8) but eventually he will start travelling to school alone and possible by bus, engage with his friends more (his friends don't have phones either so they talk through us parents lol). It would be a safety thing more than anything so they will be limits on it, much like his laptop has at the moment.
I had mine around the same time, but hardly used it as I was dropped to school by a cab company or my mother.

Covid forced my hand this year to buy him a laptop as they went into remote learning after christmas, I would have bought him one round about secondary school as well.
Majority of his life so far he was raised without heavy technology use, hence probably why he enjoys more simply things like reading, board games, playing outside, arts and crafts. Although much like his parents he has a knack for gaming and is very good with technology and coding anyway.

 

[eclipsoul]

i had my first phone at the age of 8, it was a flip phone where i couldn't even change my wallpaper and could only make calls, texts and play some basic games. then i had a cheap smartphone at the age of 11-12, but i didn't use it for social media or anything all i did was watch music videos on youtube and play subway surfers lmao. i think the appropriate age depends on how much time a child is spending away from their parents so that they can contact them in case something happens. if i had children (never going to happen though) i wouldn't want them to become social media addicts at a young age so i sure wouldn't buy them an iphone at 5 but i would never wait until high school because i'd prefer them to have some contact with others, including their parents because i'm not going to keep a teenager stuck at home all the time. i'm so glad my parents didn't wait until high school to get me a phone because if i didn't have one my classmates would make fun of me more than they already did

 

[Magician]

Well, I got my first phone when I was around 12. I went to school alone and my parent wanted me to have a phone for emergency reasons. But I was only able to make calls with it.