Children and mobile phones

[daffy654]

All of my 10 year old son's friends have mobile phones and I reluctantly allowed my older daughter to buy my son one at christmas. If you have children how old were they when they had their first phone? If you don't have children what sort of age would you say is right for a child to own a mobile? My son is now in need of a more "trendy" mobile because his so called friends have been taking the mickey out of the one he has,this was the exact reason I didn't want him to have one just yet as I can't afford to keep buying him the latest phone just to keep up with his mates who have better off parents.

[bobtheturkey]

these phones have full internet access now so the pitfalls are obvious

[weeal]

Hi daffy

I dont have children but I would like to think that having a mobile was a good 'safety' thing for them, there are no longer payphones to hand like there were when I was wee, and if you need to get a hold of your kids a mobile must be great. I would cap the spending on them tho. Re the 'trendiness' of phones, it must be difficult on both the parents and the kids.

[daffy654]

I hadn't even thought about the internet access thing bob! The one he has now is just a basic clamshell phone that my daughter paid �30 for,it doesn't even have bluetooth and can't play MP3's which is why his school mates keep taking the p*ss out of him.

[happyjo]

Hi

I have three girls.

My eldest was allowed a phone when she started to play out with her friends alone.. she was 11. I wanted her to get used to the responsibility, as would need one when she went to high school that same year. ( high school is a bus and train journey away..). It was only a cheap one!!

My middle one who is now 11 has her elder sister, who is now 13, old cheap one.

Its your choice, but I certainly would not be persuaded in to buying an all singing and dancing mobile. I have told mine, that when they earn their own monet they can buy any phone they choose!!!

J x

[Hellyon]

We've made an agreement in our family that they can have a phone when they start senior school which is 11. My nephew got his last year and my son will get one later this year.
My nephew had the same problem re: trendy phone, as it turned out my brother in law needed a new phone (old one broke) so he gave my nephew his new phone and used my nephews old phone . Not an ideal solution but would that help any?
I have to say my nepwhew is very sensitive about being teased but my son is completely unfazed so probably won't be bothered if his friends say his phone isn't trendy enough!!

[daffy654]

My son doesn't need the phone for safety reasons just yet weeal,he has Asperger Syndrome so is not allowed to go out with his mates without adult supervision. It just wouldn't be safe as he has no road sense whatsoever and would very likely be run over within minutes of stepping out the front door.

[tickledtrout]

Hi daffy, I have'nt got children but my husband has Grandchildren around the same age and they have them, more for safety than anything else. I think the budget is controlled by their mum and dad to a degree possibly through contract, so they can't go daft.

[kawa4]

my son was 10 when he first got a phone. he complaind about his old phone. i asked if it still workes he said yes. i said your lucky mine dont. so he still got his old phone

[Mr k]

My nephew was 7 when he had his dads old phone which didn't have a camera or mp3 player on.. All his mates of the same age had everything on there's. As you can guess he wanted one like his mates he never got one they told that or nothing....

[tickledtrout]

A word of warning tho, my boss bought her daughter a mobile on contract with so many free messages and ended up with a monthly bill for �48 on txt alone. Needless to say she had to wash up for weeks to pay it off!

[EngTeach]

I do not have children. I see the convenience of the youngsters having it for pick ups and such, but where is a 10 year old going alone that the phone would be a safety issue? My friend's daughter had one at 8 and brought it to school. NYC schools do NOT allow ANY electronic devices to be brought in, (Though they are.) She felt that if she wants her kid to have it the school has no right to say otherwise. I disagree. I think at about 12 a child should have a prepaid phone to see how they manage the minutes before committing to a contract.

[Ice.Maiden]

My eldest (10) has a phone that does just about everything - but I object to mobiles, full stop, because of the radiation hazard. New research shows that, particularly when kept on, against the body (such as in a pocket), the dangers are more widespread than first thought.