What age is appropriate to buy LO a cellphone?

[bumpy_j]

i'd buy my little one a mobile on the cheap when he's at primary school age but would only give him it for school trips/going to the park- and only keep my number on it, i'd keep it on me the rest of the time cos i see it as pretty unnecessary otherwise - they can use the landline and at least then i know they aren't draining their credit. i didn't get a mobile till I was eleven and I think that's a good age to give them their own phone to keep.

 

[Kimmy25]

Girlfriend at 11? Wow!
I agree about the Iphone

My son is ten and he's had the same girlfriend for nearly a year! its so sweet lol x[/QUOTE]

id give my son one as soon as he starts going places alone hes already pushing for this now but I wont let him.

my son got dumped off his gf for someone else he was upset aww..her mam was disappointed as she thinks coreys gorgeous and thinks her daughter has no taste

 

[xemmax]

I really don't want Oliver to have one until I really feel it's necessary. I can't put a time on it but I doubt it would be before he is 10.

 

[todteach]

My sister got her son one when he was around 10 yrs old, and started having more independdence. Makes her feel better about letting him go off without her. She's able to call him and check in. A bit of a safety net.

 

[amygwen]

I think our lifestyles are so different than what they used to be when I was growing up. I got my first mobile phone (w/ limited features) when I had my 13th birthday. I'd only use it to text family or call them. There are plenty of services that allow you to give your child a phone and will only let them call emergency numbers or you can program it to call mom or call dad, etc etc. Six years old is really young in my opinion, really a child shouldn't need a cell phone being that young, sure they go out on field trips, they might go over to a friends house, but all of the places they go, there should be a phone handy there in case the parent needs to call or the child needs to call. I'm a bit iffy about a 6 year old having a cell phone.. maybe a bit older.

 

[I_AM_LIVID]

Everything in moderation, I say. If I got my LOs phones before age 12, the phones would also be restricted to outings. I would put my number on speed dial and voice dial just so I know they are able to call me quick if there's ever trouble. Definitely wouldn't let them keep the phone when they are at home or at school and they wouldn't have other numbers on there except immediate family. When they are older and have more independence they can keep the phones.

 

[I_AM_LIVID]

I think our lifestyles are so different than what they used to be when I was growing up. I got my first mobile phone (w/ limited features) when I had my 13th birthday. I'd only use it to text family or call them. There are plenty of services that allow you to give your child a phone and will only let them call emergency numbers or you can program it to call mom or call dad, etc etc. Six years old is really young in my opinion, really a child shouldn't need a cell phone being that young, sure they go out on field trips, they might go over to a friends house, but all of the places they go, there should be a phone handy there in case the parent needs to call or the child needs to call. I'm a bit iffy about a 6 year old having a cell phone.. maybe a bit older.

I understand what you are saying and agree with you for the most part except the bolded part. When on field trips, sure there is always a grown up with a phone, but what if god forbid there is an accident or something bad happens? The likelihood is that you will not be the first person that adult calls, even if your child is directly affected or injured. There's also a possibility that the grown up doesn't even have the contact details of all the parents, especially if the field trip has a large group of children. I'd just like to know that if my child was able to call me in the case of an emergency that they would. For me it's purely for keeping me in the know and a safety measure. Like most posters said, my LOs having phones will depend greatly on their activities outside the house, whether that's 6 years or older.

 

[Mya209]

I might give them one at 6 if we were going to a crowded place where we might get separated but it wouldnt be 'theirs'. It would come back to me after the event. I wouldn't want a 6 year old txting friends or things like that (I know that might sound old fashioned but that's the way it will be in my house!).

I got my first mobile at 16 and spent all my time texting and meeting up with older men. I wouldn't want my child at 6 years old having that facility alone in their bedroom just like I wouldn't let them have unsupervised computer or tv use in their bedroom.

I also wouldn't let a six year old have a nintendo DS or IPod. That's just me! They should be sharing music and games with the family. I don't like how those gadgets encourage them to sit on their own and be insular. They are too young. I know lots of people that disagree with me, but kids grow up too fast these days in my opinion! My 6 year old niece steals her mums lipstick and has a toy hair straightener. When I was 6 I was slobbing around in my flowery leggins and digging in the garden.

 

[jojo2605]

I am more inclined to agree with the person who posted on facebook if I'm honest!!

I don't see the need for a child that age to have a phone! If my child is under say 10-12 and are not with me they would be with another responsible adult anyway and therefore a phone would not be necessary.

From roughly 12years onwards when they start to go out on their own I would buy them a second hand basic phone that wasn't worth stealing so if they needed to contact me in an emergency then they could.

I would have no problem with buying my sons something like the ipod touch that you play games on, etc, but as for the phone aspect. Nope don't think so.

I also think it's an extra outlet for bullying. If my child wanted to communicate with their friends they could use the internet which I would make sure was monitored and protected, etc.

 

[jojo2605]

I think our lifestyles are so different than what they used to be when I was growing up. I got my first mobile phone (w/ limited features) when I had my 13th birthday. I'd only use it to text family or call them. There are plenty of services that allow you to give your child a phone and will only let them call emergency numbers or you can program it to call mom or call dad, etc etc. Six years old is really young in my opinion, really a child shouldn't need a cell phone being that young, sure they go out on field trips, they might go over to a friends house, but all of the places they go, there should be a phone handy there in case the parent needs to call or the child needs to call. I'm a bit iffy about a 6 year old having a cell phone.. maybe a bit older.

I understand what you are saying and agree with you for the most part except the bolded part. When on field trips, sure there is always a grown up with a phone, but what if god forbid there is an accident or something bad happens? The likelihood is that you will not be the first person that adult calls, even if your child is directly affected or injured. There's also a possibility that the grown up doesn't even have the contact details of all the parents, especially if the field trip has a large group of children. I'd just like to know that if my child was able to call me in the case of an emergency that they would. For me it's purely for keeping me in the know and a safety measure. Like most posters said, my LOs having phones will depend greatly on their activities outside the house, whether that's 6 years or older.

I'm sure that if your child was on a field trip that they wouldn't be allowed to have their mobiles with them? That seems to be how it works here anyway; i'm sure children are discouraged from taking a moblie to school and they're not allowed in class etc?

 

[kerrie24]

A couple of years ago I told my son when he was 10 he could have one.Its passed so quick he will be 10 in january and all his friends have blackberries or iphones.

 

[oliviarose]

My mum got Olivia a phone at 6 for Xmas. I was not happy about this as I felt she was too young. She loved it thou, she only ever used to text my mum, dad and brother. She is 7 now and it has been switched off for a few months.

None of her friends have mobiles, so to me it is of no use at her age.

I would say around 10-11 would be a good age to start nowadays.

 

[Agiboma]

well i plan on getting my son a cell phone as son as he can use one and communicate properly i thought 5-6 was a good age for getting him one imo and it would be a phone geared to someone his age, so i don t intend on getting him a blackberry or iphone

 

[pupsicle]

I would say anytime after starting high school. My brothers coming up to 14 and has no interest in owning a mobile phone, neither did i or my sister at that age.

 

[Mummy2Asher]

My son is 4 and has one but that's because he visits his biological dad and grandparents every few months and they only let him phone me once a day so that's why I got it so he could phone me when he needed to. I think the right age is when they start having sleep overs etc my neice got one in year 5/6 so about 10yrs.
I'm very modern and let my son use a lot of technology, he loves the laptop and especially the iPad, they even use ipads at nursery!

 

[Surprise]

My son is 13, and I got him one when he was 12. It's because when my boys are with their dad, he won't answer the phone when I call to speak to them! And he takes them out of town to visit his family and I can't reach my children. Grrrr.... The phone was free with our contract and we pay an extra $20 a month. We have a family plan with unlmited minutes and texts, so he is allowed to text and talk as much as he wants. He texts his mates and phones all his relatives in other states, it's fine. BUT he is required to keep his school grades up to a standard which I specified. I check his grades online frequently, and he has lost his phone to me when his grades weren't up. I find it a good motivation to make him study more!

 

[aliss]

I'm a 911 operator and you wouldn't believe how many times ambulance emergency lines (as well as police, fire) get jammed from inappropriate child cell phone use! We had one instance a few years back where a woman could not get through to 911 with her husband going into cardiac arrest because a 3 year old was given a cell phone to play with! Not to mention the 6, 7 year olds who find it funny to prank call kidnappings and hostage takings (which must be treated as real even if we know it is a prank).

Bottom line there is NO appropriate 'age' but simply the maturity and stability of the child. I have had incredibly mature 4 year olds who have appropriately used cell phones to call 911 when their parent had a health problem or parents fighting in a domestic dispute, and 12 year olds who have prank called murders. Your child, your decision, but be wise because if you give a phone to a child who is not ready, it can cost lives.

End rant!

 

[jenny_wren]

i was 11 when i got my first one but they were
quite new back then lol

i'd say from year 7 onwards but i know children
who are 8/9 and have iphones and all sorts ​

 

[elephant29]

For me personally I wont be giving Aria a mobile at 6 years old. I just really dont think it's necessary in the slightest.

I know what people are saying regarding school trips but I have to wonder what happened in the days before mobile phones? I survived many a school trip unscathed so I would trust that my kids would as well. Sure bad things might happen but they might not and a mobile phone isnt going to stop it.

xxx

 

[PepsiChic]

itsa hard call.

i didnt have a cell phone till i was 15/16 years old. if i went out on school trips my parents made sure they had the phone number of the adults in charge and could call them at any time to speak to me. same with going around a friends house, my parents had my friends parents number and the other way around. so i dont think a cell phone is neccesary.

sure they could call someone else first...to be honest if something happened id hope they called an ambulance before they called me! i mean who else are they going to call? the nieghbours? doubtful, the first people teachers or other parents call is a response team, the second is the parents of the child. Ive never know it to be any other way. yes things change...but how on earth did we all survive without a cell phone at 10 years old?!

a cell phone does NOT protect your child from something happening. if they got hit by a car they wouldnt be calling 911... a responsible adult who is in charge of the child at the time would be making that call.

so my theory is only let your child go to places where you know the adult in charge can and will contact you should ANYTHING happen. if i didnt trust my sons friends parents, to call me, then he wouldnt be going over there, instead their kid can come over to mine.

My LO will get a cell phone when i believe he is mature enough to use one properly, wont be prank calling 911, or other people. when he knows not to use all his minutes up in one go, just like he wont be using the internet till he knows and understands why you dont give out your information or post photos willy nilly all over the net, or talk inappropriately.

so for me its a case of two things, MY responsibility of my child, and his maturity. this wont likely be before 10 years.