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I've been telling my son he can have a cell phone once he's 12
Posted on 6/18/26 at 10:35 pm
Posted on 6/18/26 at 10:35 pm
Well, he's about to be 12.
I want him to be able to call people and SMS text people, and I want a dirt cheap phone (he will lose it or break it) and a dirt cheap plan.
What's my play here?
I want him to be able to call people and SMS text people, and I want a dirt cheap phone (he will lose it or break it) and a dirt cheap plan.
What's my play here?
12
Posted on 6/18/26 at 10:57 pm to deeprig9
Don’t get him one
Posted on 6/19/26 at 5:45 am to deeprig9
Gabb wireless
Posted on 6/19/26 at 9:10 am to deeprig9
Don’t, then look him in the eye and tell him life’s full of empty promises and not to trust anyone.
Then hit him once to show him it’s not a joke.
Then hit him once to show him it’s not a joke.
Posted on 6/19/26 at 11:07 am to deeprig9
The second your kid gets a phone with internet, he’s no longer a kid
Posted on 6/19/26 at 12:37 pm to deeprig9
I got mine a Bark phone. Those are pretty cheap.
and they can be setup for just that.
quote:
I want him to be able to call people and SMS text people
and they can be setup for just that.
Posted on 6/19/26 at 12:37 pm to deeprig9
My daughter is 13 and doesn't have her own phone - we're planning on 16 when she starts driving. All but one of her friends have their own phone, one of which has health issues which could pose ER visits so that one's understandable.
As far as plans, Tello has plans as low as $5/mo for limited talk/text and no data.
For the phone, yeah it's going to get lost or broken so go with something older on Swappa or similar sites
As far as plans, Tello has plans as low as $5/mo for limited talk/text and no data.
For the phone, yeah it's going to get lost or broken so go with something older on Swappa or similar sites
Posted on 6/19/26 at 2:40 pm to deeprig9
Apple Watch SE, used. As soon as he gets access to apps on any phone, you've lost him. You start now with "call people and SMS text," and as soon as school starts, he's going to get told he needs to scan QR codes to be able to watch "educational" YouTube videos, and his group project has everyone get into a FaceTime group to do the work (real worth examples.)
Posted on 6/19/26 at 4:46 pm to deeprig9
No smartphones until high school.
Signed, A Middle School Teacher
Signed, A Middle School Teacher
Posted on 6/21/26 at 11:52 am to deeprig9
My kid is 6. He has Apple Watch. He can tell Siri to call us. We can call and track him. No ability to watch video or other apps to get addicted to. So far so good.
Posted on 6/25/26 at 9:15 pm to deeprig9
Check out budget Samsung phones. Galaxy A17 is under $200 and can do what you need.
Posted on 6/26/26 at 8:19 am to deeprig9
Tello $10 plan. Buy a used phone on Swappa.
Posted on 6/26/26 at 8:21 am to GOP_Tiger
quote:
No smartphones until high school.
Signed, A Middle School Teacher
I agree with this sentiment but I will admit that parents can lock down a regular iPhone pretty easily. This combined with DNS blocking at the Tello account level works really well.
Posted on 6/26/26 at 8:28 am to notsince98
quote:
parents can lock down a regular iPhone pretty easily
What percentage do? Nearly none. Parents that try, remove the restrictions usually after less than a week of being nagged every five minutes.
Posted on 6/26/26 at 8:43 am to LemmyLives
quote:
What percentage do?
No clue but everyone in our church/friend circle does.
quote:
Parents that try, remove the restrictions usually after less than a week of being nagged every five minutes.
Didn't have that issue and none of our friends have either. 1) you can disable those notifications and 2) When our kids were trying to download apps they did not have permission, they lost the phone for a few days. You can't keep the guardrails on forever and teaching them that it isn't their phone and if they dont follow the rules they lose it goes a long way. and then when they are 12, sit them down and have them research the pros and cons of social media so they can make their own decision about how bad it is for them.
Posted on 6/26/26 at 8:53 am to LemmyLives
We may be in the minority here but our 11 year old has one.
He has a couple games that have a 1 hour timer on them. He has no Internet Browser app, no YouTube, and no social media. He can ask Siri questions, but no open internet option. Everything is essentially locked until 8am and then locks again at 8pm (unless he's out with friends).
He can always request things but once he's out of time or in the dead period at home, it's useless. It's come in handy when we goes to a friends house. He can always communicate with us and we tell the parents ahead of time so they know.
He has a couple games that have a 1 hour timer on them. He has no Internet Browser app, no YouTube, and no social media. He can ask Siri questions, but no open internet option. Everything is essentially locked until 8am and then locks again at 8pm (unless he's out with friends).
He can always request things but once he's out of time or in the dead period at home, it's useless. It's come in handy when we goes to a friends house. He can always communicate with us and we tell the parents ahead of time so they know.
Posted on 6/29/26 at 1:12 pm to LemmyLives
quote:
What percentage do? Nearly none. Parents that try, remove the restrictions usually after less than a week of being nagged every five minutes.
not many.
My wife keeps undoing the restrictions i put on my two kids phones, and it's starting to piss me off. It's pathetic, but i'm about to have to change the passcode to somethign she doesn't know so she quits doing it. They know if they ask me for more time the answer is no, so they bug her enough until she allows it.
Posted on 7/26/26 at 5:45 pm to deeprig9
Get him a tablet and modify to only allow browsing OT Lounge.
He’ll be more of a man than you soon enough.
He’ll be more of a man than you soon enough.
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