Cell Phones For Kids

Cell phones are cheap now and, if you hunt around and do your research properly, so are local call charges. So should you include very young kids on your cell phone gift list? Well, it was not an option a decade or two ago, so this is a new dilemma - something else for parents to worry about.

Or is it? There was no option for cell phones for children, because cell phones did not exist. Then until a decade ago they started to become cheaper. Nowadays, it seems difficult to justify not giving your kids cell phones. The foremost reason why parents like to give their children cell phones is for safety.

Are there more dangers for children now or does it merely appear that way? Kids have been going to school for a hundred years, so why is that a difficulty now? Increased traffic is one reason given, but inner cities were dangerous when horses and carriages were flying around corners as well and there were fewer policemen and no traffic lights then either.

Or are we more afraid because the media loves to report bad news, so we are more conscious of these threats to children? Fifty years ago, my mother told me never to take lifts from strangers. Why is that basic advice not enough anymore?

Some individuals say that there are more predators than ever, because we have been poisoned by junk food, pollution and sex on TV. Whatever you believe, there is no denying the fact that parents are very concerned about their children while they are out of sight.

One pretty cheap way of easing these problems is to give your child a cell phone. This is not a bad thing. It could even encourage your child to get into technology, because you can show your child how to customize the phone with wallpaper, screen savers, ring tones, themes and profiles.

There are two ways to go with cell phones for kids. You could either get a pay-as-you-go phone so that the phone call budget is under your management or you could buy a cell phone family plan so that there are free calls between phones on the family network.

For safety reasons, it is best not to give your child a cell phone that is enabled to go on the Internet. It is also a good idea to get them one that cannot take photos. Most of the perceived threats to kids come from the Net and the SMS (text messaging) of pornography.

If you buy a cell phone for your child, buy one that is just that - a cell phone, for making telephone calls in emergencies - and not one that is also a camera, video camera or an Internet device. A simple phone will give you the best of both worlds: safety for your child, without putting him or her at even more risk.

Owen Jones, the author of this article, writes on a number of topics, but is now involved with looking for the best cell phone family plans. If you would like to know more, please visit our site at Family Plans For Cell Phones