Manage your child’s phone use by playing “dumb”
When it comes to buying a cellphone for your children, the dumb play might be the best play.
Indeed, “dumb phones,” including Gabb, Light, Exalt, and Jethro, are coming of age. These devices — also known as feature phones — offer phone calls and texting, but little else.
You can’t download Facebook or Snapchat apps on them. These phones are also way cheaper than Apple iPhones, Samsung Galaxies and other smartphones that your children may crave even though they cost as much as a high-end laptop.
In other words, dumb phones are an attractive option for parents who want to give their children a phone so they can remain in contact, especially in case of emergencies, but want to limit their access to the Internet and social media. This option is especially important for kids and parents since research links excessive use of social media to anxiety and depression disorders.
Your kids might not like them, but many of the feature phones at least have cool designs and are as sleek as their more expensive brethren.
Gabb Wireless is one of the newest entrants to the “dumb phone” market. In late September, the Salt Lake City-based company launched a national rollout of two phones designed specifically for children, with unlimited talk and text capability but without access to the internet or excessive external apps.
The Gabb Z1, which is manufactured by ZTE and sells for about $100, features a camera, an alarm, a calendar app, a calculator and FM radio. The Gabb S1, which costs about $200, is a Samsung product and has more style and features, including a Bluetooth function.
The two phones run on the Verizon network. Gabb offers two pay-as-you-go service plans with no long term contracts: a Basic plan at $19.99 a month designed for ages eight to 14, which blocks MMS, or multimedia messaging service, so users can’t send or receive inappropriate images and videos; and a Plus plan at $22.99 a month that adds group messaging and picture texting.
The Gabb network “helps parents manage their children’s exposure to technology in a way that is safe and meets each family’s unique needs,” the company’s founder and chief executive, Stephen Dalby, said in a statement.
Features aside, how can parents determine when children are mature enough to get their first cellphone? Here are some criteria to consider from PBS Parents:
Unfortunately, what these phones still won’t address is kids finding ways to set up social media accounts on friends’ devices or online profiles that their parents can’t see.
But at least a feature, or “dumb” phone can cut down on the amount of time your children are spending on their cellphones and with social media. And, perhaps over time, your children will gain a better understanding of the value of communicating face to face. Not such a dumb idea after all.
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