Hey folks, my wife and I use Pixel phones, but we’re starting to think about a phone for our kid, really just to be able to call 911, probably wouldn’t even get data. We’re looking for cheap and boring, the fewer features, the better. Also open to smart watches, tho we have no experience with them.
Are there any devices that fit the bill? I’m thinking something like an old Nokia brick from 20 years ago, but of course with VoLTE/VoNR.
Thanks for any help this community can provide!
just putting it out there: giving them a cheap android phone will steer them away from android forever as they will be conditioned to think that all android are as cheap and terrible as the ones they have been given
Yeah give em a first gen iPhone SE. It works ok for now, plus they’re cheap. But since support ended they’ll soon start having some issues. That’ll definitely make them want an Android >:D
Totally fair, tho we don’t need it to run Android. Some locked down OS that only does phone calls might be okay.
Do you still have an old android phone sitting in a drawer somewhere? Perhaps giving the child this with parental controls might be a useful solution. My rationale
- You can still use an app such as Signal or WhatsApp to communicate with them
- You can also use “find my device” (relevant android police article on this topic)
- This is cheaper than buying even a cheap dumb phone since you already own the device, and you can argue better for the environment since you’re re-using something instead of creating more e-waste
- Particularly if the Android phone is still updated, it is more secure than a dumb phone these days.
Say no more, OP.
Rotary Un-Smartphone.Haha, that’s awesome. I love the ringer!
Google needs to make the three Little Pigsels, a series of special starter Pixels for children. The three Pigsels come in Straw, Wood, or Brick, and feature a stock Android UI and a standard Pixel camera to get your child started on the correct path.
I‘d also go the parental controls route, you can relax that gradually as they grow older instead of having to buy new phones.
Excellent point. Yeah, we already use Family Link to manage screen time and it’s working well
Nokia still makes dumb phones now, with 4G too!
Check out the Nokia 225 4G and 6300 4G.
The banana phone (Nokia 8110 4G) is also a fun dumb phone.
I bought this one for my youngest brother. It works fine and it comes with a years worth of service. Bought it so he can call me during emergencies. https://slickdeals.net/share/android_app/fp/829226
I got a gently used sonim phone for $50 on eBay, they have industructable feature phones with great battery life.
Any phone would do just that. Get the cheapest dumb phone you can find. That way it also doesn’t break the bank when it eventually breaks.
If you’re truly just after 911, Even a deactivated cell phone would call that in the US.
We ended up getting the kid an Apple smartwatch with LTE. The monthly price when it’s not bad it’s like 10 bucks. The upshot being he could call us with it we could call him with it and find my iPhone can locate him at any time.
Kyocera DuraXE looks promising, but not compatible with all carriers.
some traditional smartphone functionality would be useful for a kid - maps, for example. no idea if there’s a partially dumb phone out there.
Wow, that looks perfect! A bit on the pricy side, but we can look for coupons. Thanks very much!
Just search dumb/bar/feature phone on Amazon, you’ll find lots of it. If you want 4G connectivity, add 4G keywords. That’s it.
Asking for recommendations usually means hoping your peers will have personal experience, which beats just searching for phones and reading the reviews that may or may not have ill intent.
I’ve seen kids with smartwatches as a solution to this
Yup, that’s definitely an option. Thanks!
Plenty of basic flip phones available for cheap, Tracfone has a Nokia for 20 bucks. Could look at phones targeted for seniors, like the jitterbug flip, if they’re really young but that would be more expensive than a basic flip phone.
Thanks! Wouldn’t have thought of a senior type of phone. I’ll take a look!
Just be careful with the Jitterbug or lively phones because he will very likely end up with police at your house or school because he pressed the urgent button. And trust me when I say they can’t remove that function even if it’s cancelled. There are other elderly phones like through tracfone more appropriate for a child. Definitely avoid any phone with an emergency button as I’m sure he’s old enough to know how to dial 911.
Thanks, that’s good advice!
I would say go with an older Apple phone. Their stock parental controls tend to be a bit better than what you can get on Android without modding, and (let’s be real) it will probably be supported for longer. When they get older you can disable the features to their maturity level.
That’s an option, but once again do you know if I can provision and use parental controls if we don’t have any other Apple devices?
