These days, it can be difficult to figure out when it’s the right time to give your child a phone. Sprint thinks it has the solution.
The company has launched a new website, called ‘KidsFirstPhone,’ designed to help advise parents when it’s time to buy a phone for their child. The site features a number of smartphone facts, as well as a quiz to help parents make the decision.
In fact, according to an Influence Central survey, the average age for a kid to get a smartphone is 10.3 years, and 1 in 2 kids have a social media account by the time they’re 12 years old.
“It used to be that getting your driver’s license was the signifying moment when freedom and the race toward growing up started,” says the website. “Times have changed and thanks to an ever-evolving world of iEverything, the timeline has accelerated — having a phone to call your own is the new first step toward independence.”
The quiz includes five questions, including asking if your child needs to stay in touch with you, if they’re honest with you, if they often break things, and so on. While Sprint says that there are a number of benefits associated with giving a child a smartphone, it also mentions the drawbacks, such as the fact that it opens kids up to cyber bullying and to having to protect their online data.
Of course, it’s important to take the new website with a grain of salt. After all, who benefits when more people are getting smartphones? Carriers and manufacturers, of course. While the site won’t totally replace the role of parents in figuring out what’s right for their kids, it could still get you pointed in the right direction and give you the arguments for and against getting a smartphone for your children.
