I paid for my daughters cellphone for many years since she was in Junior HS. When she entered college, I got a new phone with new service and paid the first two months then said its now her bill to pay. It worked out fine. But the early years were crazy. I had some mega bills because of her a few times. But I wanted her to have a phone. I'm sure some here pay for their kids phones. My question here is, would your parents have gotten you a cellphone and paid the bill when you were in school? I don't think mine would have. And if they got me a phone I probably would have had it taken away from me many times. Like when the report card came, if I got suspended, if I didn't mow the lawn, if I came home too late, caught drunk, etc. As parents we spend a lot of money on our kids. Well at least I did. My parents....not so much.
Fuck 'em! Spoiled brats don't need cell phones. If they want one they can get a job cooking burgers at McDonalds to pay for it.
I hear you. But they can't get that job till they are at least 16. And I'm guessing that's what your parents would have told you.
Exactly. I think having cell phones too young would greatly inhibit the development of a child under 16. Forget thinking if they are walking around with a hand-held computer/communications device 24 hours a day.
I agree. But my kid had no internet on her phone and limited texting. Also, her HS did not allow them in the school. But the phones today are a whole nother deal.
A family friend of ours have a 15 year old kid who last season went skiing out of bounds by himself on Whistler (idiot). He ended up hitting a broken branch that was sticking out of a tree well and it went right through his knee. If he didn't have his cell phone on him he'd be dead, no doubt about it. So I guess a case can be made for it in that sense, but I tend to lean towards the "what the hell does a kid need a cell phone for anyways" mindset. My parents sure as shit wouldn't have done that for me, I remember wanting a pager when I was young and was told to go get it myself. It does seem that every kid out there has a cell phone now, so by not getting your kid one I wonder how that impacts where they stand socially.
What's about that? What exactly does a 12 year old need a phone for? What, in case the office calls and needs 'em to come in and file those TPS reports on a Saturday? So they don't miss that 3 am booty call? So that Publisher's Clearing House can reach them when they win the $21 whomptillion dollar jackpot? There are only a few extreme circumstances in which a child needs his or her own mobile phone -- and every last one of those circumstances = "a result of shitty parenting."
A generic "otc" cell phone, on a basic lowest plan available, with NO bells & whistles, except maybe a camera, should be just fine for kids in 2013. They should keep it on vibrate and ONLY use it for emergencies &/or to call Maw'n'Paw to get picked up from school if they don't or can't take a school bus.
If a kid has an emergency where there's no responsible adult around who's in possession of a phone, that kid was in a spot that good parenting wouldn't have seen them get into. Phoning home to get picked up can be done with a prepaid phone card or by borrowing the phone of a responsible adult; for example, at the school, at the friend's parents' house, et cetera. No need anywhere in those contingencies for the kid to have his or her own phone.
I am. Coincidentally enough, that's why my kid isn't. Anyway, she has her own phone, but only because her mother isn't as strict as I am.
Yeah, a generic no frills phone is fine to get for a kid when they're in middle school simply because they'll start going out to socialize more often and they need a way to stay in contact with their parents. I had a cell phone but never really took it with me anywhere until I started driving when I turned 16.
Excessive technology use is not necessarily good for a child's development, but that's more in early years. By the age when they're old enough to go out and do things with their friends without an adult present -- typically around middle school -- that's less of a concern. Shit happens sometimes, and if I had a kid, I'd want him or her to be able to call me if it happened to them.
No way mine would when I was growing up. Maybe a super basic phone, but I guess I never needed to keep a friend's number long what with moving from air force base to air force base, anyway. I still remember calling my folks using 1-800-COLLECT and they would get the message: "You have a call from (Hey it's Ramen call me back), would you like to accept the charges?" I'd imagine I'd get my kid the latest whiz bang gadget because I'm a gadget geek and maybe it'd be something to bond over or something.
It would be nice if you could get a teenage kid a basic phone (i.e., not a smart phone) that would have a limited number of talk-time minutes (say, 120) every month (no rollover). After the number of minutes is reached, the phone would be receive-only (except for 911, of course, and, ideally, the parents' number). Incoming calls after the limit would be limited to 1 minute. And no texting capability. This way, they'd have it when they needed it or when you needed to get a hold of them, but they wouldn't idle away their time chatting on it.
All reasonable and achievable. My thing is that it better to hook them up in some way cuz you don't want them buying hot burners.
Now that's the phone for the spoiled brats. 8-11 yrs old. But still, its an option. With a little ridicule on the side.
If you give your kid a phone, first teach them to read a normal fucking clock. I was at the deli one day when a 6th grader asked the counter man what time it was. The guy pointed at the old Hamilton on the wall. The kid said "I can't read that! What's it say on your phone?"
By and large, I figure if they're old enough to be going places without an adult, they're old enough to have a phone with a number keypad.
What happened to the parents that used to say "if your friends all jumped off a cliff would you?", and "you're going to school, not a fashion show", and "I don't care if ____ has ____ let ____'s parent buy it for you"? What happened? The last couple fucking generation of parents just totally give in to their kids conformity like zombies.
My folks would have bought a prepaid tracphone. They would have told me that if I wanted anything better I would have to pay for it myself. I wouldn't have bothered at least until my later high school years. Paying for a cell phone would have cut into my baseball card money.
My parents never would have sprung for a cell phone. I, on the other hand, will buy my son a phone(so I don't have to call my ex-wife to talk to him!).
Let me add that I my daughter took public transportation in Brooklyn starting in Junior High. So consider the place.
