from faux to real - the rise of kiddie phones
Standing in the toy section of a store in the Hong Kong airport, I was fascinated by the wide array of faux laptops made for children. These machines were designed to look like laptops, but their functionality was extremely limited to a learning-based program with the graphical capability of a Tamagotchi. Faux electronics for children have been around for a while, especially in the world of mobile phones. Lately, though, technology has become cheaper and what was once faux is now real. While children’s laptops are still more hype than reality, phones for children are appearing all over the place. These “kiddie” phones are often smaller, simpler, and more brightly colored.
A few weeks ago, the New York Times reported on the tide of concern in Europe over the rise in kiddie phones. On one hand, there are questions about the long-term health effects of mobile phones. On the other, there is a parenting concern about whether young children should have phones at all. One of the experts quoted draws a parallel between the mobile phone and tobacco industries. In other words, are companies acting maliciously by addicting kids to mobile phones at a young age? Luckily, since it’s Europe, the furor is prompting a bunch of research.
In the States, kiddie phones have had a different tenor. Here, the safety concern revolves around access to porn and other “harmful” content as well as the potential for dangerous contact from strangers. (Research is not encouraged.) When kiddie phones are available, their uniqueness is less about look and feel than it is about parent-child specific features. For example, the branded kiddie cell phone service offered by Disney was a glorified parent tracking device for parents. Last fall, Disney cancelled the service, citing challenges breaking through the carrier stranglehold.
All of this makes me wonder… What is the appropriate age for children to first get phones? What should be the purpose of those phones? What regulation is necessary? What are the responsibilities of parents?
Entry Filed under: Technologies
13 Comments Add your own
1. turph | March 25th, 2008 at 3:53 pm
When I was a kid the phone was on the wall. No locks, no parental controls, no special age restrictions. We were taught what it was for and why one would use it. It is just a tool.
Kids parrot the parents. It seems right now parents, here in the states, are projecting their neurotic behavior of abduction phobia and terror on to their kids.
Phones are the new status symbol for kids. The upsell of phone accessories, ring tones and kid focused plans do border on preditory.
Parents need to parent, not let Verizon do it for them.
2. Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino | March 25th, 2008 at 5:42 pm
It’s also interesting to see how kids phones are marketed. Should a phone look like a kid’s phone? or is that talking down to kids who aspire to be like their parents? If you look at the latest version of the Firefly it’s clear which way they went.
3. JeanHuguesRobert | March 25th, 2008 at 5:56 pm
What is the appropriate age for children to first get phones? The earlier the better.
Versus: When everybody around has one.
What regulation is necessary? Children pay for the outgoing communications. Then they choose to either call or buy candies
Versus: Limit calls to parents.
What are the responsibilities of parents? Help children use the phone properly.
Versus: Spying.
4. manuelg | March 25th, 2008 at 5:59 pm
When to get first phone for the kid?
2 days after the first family emergency, that could have been made much less traumatic if the kid had only had a cell phone.
Humans always prepare for the _last_ catastrophe. Why fight it?
5. Bertil | March 25th, 2008 at 6:15 pm
A friend has a two-month old child, and for personal reason, has to leave him to the care of several nannies. To simplify many issues (silent vibration is not heard by some, baby cries with too loud non-baby music, some nannies have several babies, etc.) she is thinking about leaving a phone in the pram, with the usual ton of nappies and spare bottles. That way, she can speed-dial the person who is actually next to the baby without having to trust a calendar, all the emergency numbers are handy, and I tried to convince her to have a calendar management tool with it, so that any update can be forwarded to whomever needs to know.
I can imagine similar features for young children, for parent-teacher communications (although e-mail is certainly better in many cases), so I’m afraid as early as possible is the way.
6. vesper de vil | March 25th, 2008 at 7:17 pm
i sure hope cell phones don’t cause lasting health problems… all i use is a cell. i don’t have a regular phone line.
i wonder if people were concerned about consequences to health when regular phones first hit the scene? and televisions??
7. Vicki Davis | March 25th, 2008 at 9:26 pm
As a former general manager in the cell phone industry and also a current teacher and parent… I see both sides. For me, as a parent, it is when I need them to have it for safety.
Here in the states, pay phones are pretty much not there any more! So, a student cannot call from school if they finish an activity after school.
That means that around 12 is when my children have it. I get unlimited texting but have a budget for the number of minutes they have.
To me, one of the biggest issues is children with cell phones that are also camera phones… I’ve seen that they often don’t know the most appropriate places to take photos (have seen them taken in the locker room) nor do they understand getting permission to share the photos of another.
These sorts of things will have to be discussed in schools because parents just don’t think about them!
8. Eric Dewhirst | March 26th, 2008 at 3:08 am
Children having phones is fine - I don’t like the monthly cost of them but as for having them I think as adults we overreact. Perhaps we overact because it was a big deal to get a Motorola Flip phone back in the day when calls were a buck a minute. I have three children (eldest is 11) and she wants a phone and if the monthly cost was less she could have one. I think the gps tracking phone is crazy - we need to let our children live a little. If my parents were narc’ing me out all the time watching where I was going all the time I would have never trusted them with anything. As for what kids want - well my son wants a Blackberry like his old man - and well I can’t blame him. Growing up in the 70’s getting your hands on a Coleco CB40 was living the dream! The dream to be connected!
Cheers - Eric
9. Leigh | March 26th, 2008 at 4:29 am
Toys have always mimicked technology - whether that be the oven, the land line phone or plastic guns.
Even when you don’t buy kids that stuff, they create it themselves with plastic bottles and boxes.
This illusion that we can stop the tide of marketing to kids is, IMO, naive. What is required is media literacy as they are doing in Ontario (Canadian) schools starting in grade 1.
10. Mark | March 26th, 2008 at 6:00 pm
I got my daughter a phone when she was 12, at the time when she wanted more autonomy of movement around the large city in which we live.
She called it a “leash,” but in a positive joking way. In the same breath, she said that it was a very long leash that allowed her freedom of movement and time flexibility in a way that respected her parents’ legitimate concern about a young teenager’s safety (I’m paraphrasing a half dozen years later).
Somehow, through her teen years we were able to negotiate amidst autonomy, responsibility, and mutual respect so that she didn’t feel overly or unfairly restricted, and we were satisfied as to her safety, especially at times when she would have otherwise been late for curfew (potential conflict gets turned around into leeway with a responsible phone call home; amazing how that works), or variously in hot water were it not for her ability to make the call, combined with the knowledge that she would not get into trouble for calling for help.
It’s a delicate balancing act that has little to do with the issue of cellphone per se, and a lot to do with respectful, but responsible, parenting.
11. Michael Foulds | March 27th, 2008 at 1:24 pm
In Japan there seems to be a strong focus on security features to protect children, who often walk to/from school or take public transport starting at very young ages.
For example: “When a child hits a crime-prevention buzzer attached to the phone or the mobile phone is turned off by somebody, the handset’s camera will turn on, take photos, and store the images for later use, and GPS will track the location of the phone and relay that data to a parent’s mobile phone or PC.
[http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/feb2007/gb20070207_064411.htm]
Also, NTT DoCoMo has recently released a mobile phone for children featuring a 100-decibel alarm. [http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2007/12/10/tech-docomo.html]
12. piers | March 27th, 2008 at 3:25 pm
12 seems an appropriate age, and for safety reasons, I can appreciate the benefits of a cell phone; however, I think children do blur the line between tool and toy, and I don’t think toys or props are acceptable at school, simply because I may feel comfortable providing my son with an inexpensive “leash” or “lifeline” so he can call home if he needs to, but I will then have concerns that he will get picked on or bullied, or feel inadequate or whatever for not having the right featureset, etc. With clothes, it has always been an issue, except where uniforms are the norm; with cars, it’s not an issue until 16+.
I don’t wear a watch because I feel uncomfortable laying out a couple hundred dollars or more for something that will be acceptable when I’m called into a meeting with clients. I’d rather be judged on a bare wrist than a cheap alternative. This is a personal choice, but also a valid concern.
13. Shift6 » April fool&hellip | April 1st, 2008 at 1:27 pm
[...] pre-teen household experienced its first Fool’s Day spoof at 7.00 this morning. It seems 12-year-olds are not only old enough to own phones, but also to work out how to withhold caller [...]
Leave a Comment
Some HTML allowed:
<a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>
Trackback this post | Subscribe to the comments via RSS Feed