Alright I 100% agree. Kids shouldn’t be playing predatory games or on a phone that is always with them.
absolutely, leading by example is a must. but kids see all their friends in school or cousins or whoever else with social medias, and the FOMO comes. that’s when you gotta educate them about how much it rots your brain
I find experience to be the best teacher. At the very least, experience reveals what is happening compared to what is perceived and/or theorized by others’ cognitive bias.
I strongly agree, I genuinely believe kids should be encouraged to master the more complicated systems like desktop PCs (especially with how great Linux is getting) before moving onto hyper simplified devices like smartphones.
Other than that I agree with the idea of if I had to give a kid their first smartphone it’d probably be a second hand Pixel while also using teaching them how to install GrapheneOS on it, in addition to the education of online safety that we used to teach before social media killed that mindset.
Also believe this is a good way, because it still allows lots of “ safe liberty “ and without them knowing you have some controls onboard.
Pixel and then install GrapheneOS
iPhone
With Apple products there is an issue of affordability. You can get refurbished iPhones and iPads, but you have to keep an eye on how long they will continue to receive security updates. With 6 - 8 years on average, that would mean a refurbished iPhone 11 would lose support around the end of 2026. Something like a refurbished iPhone 15 would be way, way out of range for regular families with several kids. So if you can afford it, iPhones are good, but I don’t think this is a practical answer for many families.
When I first began thinking about phones for my children, I was looking at phones below 100 USD.
This would be ideal, but as with the iPhone solution, there is a serious question about affordability. A Pixel 7 currently has 2 more years of support. A refurbished Pixel 7 may be in range for average families, depending on how many kids they have. A Pixel 8 has 4 more years of support, but even a refurbished Pixel 8 will be unaffordable for many families with normal incomes.
It would be amazing if GOS would develop and implement some Screen Time-like controls to compete with iOS in that regard. I know you would need accounts and server syncs, but still.
This sounds like it implies that for experienced driver’s it would be okay to be on the phone while driving.
No its waste of money and mainly it spoils the child. If they really need a phone for emergency i will give them a burner phone. Many kids don’t understand the value of money wasting tons of money on phone at young age is not good parenting at all. Even if i am a billionaire i will do this only.
A burner phone is one you throw away after using so you don’t get tracked, that’s a lot more wasteful than just getting them a good phone with good security that will last about 7-8 years. Don’t get your kids e-waste phones.
Depends on the kid, some kids would make any phone e-waste in a week. I would personally never give my kid a 1000$ phone as their first phone without knowing if they can take care of it or not but I can see your logic.
I would give them a used IPhone or a used Pixel as their first phone with 2-3 years left.
Why don’t you mention the A series? Right now, browsing the second-hand market, I can find a Pixel 8a for $200 and a Pixel 8 for $250. The 9a brand new for $350.
A burner phone is one you throw away after using
sorry there is little misunderstanding here i am talking about the phones like the old nokia where its durable won’t break very easily but now a days its not the case these dumb phones mostly are very fragile now but they usually last long for 4+ years. It only cost around 10$.
good phone with good security that will last about 7-8 years.
You are looking at outer part but when you go deep down with care you realize that using smart phones at younger age may lead to vision problems in future. Now a days teens and adults spending more time with their phone there is no bonding between the parents and their childrens even there is no bonding between husband and wife if there is no bonding between husband and wife in the first place how come they can teach their kids about it. We are not immortal like gods we are humans we only have little time on this Earth instead of wasting time on the unncessary things and stuff we should invest more time on our parents, life partner, kids and take care of them and spend as much time as possible with them and create beautiful memories.
Get an insurance like Apple Care+ or some trusted electronics insurance. In Germany we have Wertgarantie, and don’t think about the damage or getting stolen. Apple Care+ you can’t get for second hand phones, but Wertgarantie works. I can’t speak for other countries but at least in Germany we have these nice insurances.
I believe there is some truth to this, which is why I am not convinced by the idea of parents being the only agent necessary to protect children. Even if you are a good parent with sound parental controls, your kid could be friends with other kids who don’t have those parental controls on their devices. Also, a lot of kids get pocket money from relatives. If a kid is smart enough to delay gratification by saving, some 13-year-olds could easily buy themselves their own iPhone or iPad.
Sometimes I think that the best way to protect your kids is to occupy them so much with other stuff (e.g.: extracurricular activities), that they have little to no time to invest in what you consider harmful for them. At the same time, I am aware that it’s not uncommon for those type of kids to rebel once they are adults, by using their newfound freedom to engage in behaviors that may be harmful to them.
You can set time limits in parental controls, also iOS has a nice feature to alert you when your phone is too close to avoid eye strain.
I agree but the discussion was about what phone to get your kids, if you don’t think they’re ready do a phone that’s totally fine. Really you have all the tools you need to both own a phone and use it responsibly you just need to utilize them.
This might be helpful for your kid(s) too: