Affordable SmartPhones for Kids

For most parents, giving their kids a smartphone is a decision that hinges on many factors. Cost is of course a major factor to consider, but putting cost aside, most parents also think whether it would be safe to let their kids have their very own smartphone in the first place.

When it comes to availability, there are many products offered on the market that specifically targets kids as its users. Companies such as AT&T, Metro PCS, Cricket, Alltell, Kajeet, Sprint, US Cellular, Virgin Mobile, and Firefly all offer different types of affordable smartphones for kids that feature different functionalities and specifications depending on a user's budget and pre-defined needs.

For parents to have some form of control on the cost of their kid's phone usage, many options can be taken into account. A pre-paid plan, for instance, will make sure that the monthly bill associated with a kid's phone will not go above the limit that has been set for him/her. On the other hand, some parents can opt for a secondary line. This option actually gives parents the ability to keep a tab on their kid's call and messaging activities. As well, it also offers some capabilities such as location tracking, which is very important for parents when it comes to ensuring the overall safety of their kids.

With such options that makes it affordable to give your kids their very own smartphone, what are some other important factors to consider?

As noted above, a kid's safety is of utmost consideration. Discussed below are some things that should be done to ensure that this is being taken cared of.

Parents should insist and make sure that their kids share their location only to immediate family members and trusted friends. This is to protect them from the possibility of strangers taking advantage of knowing their location and using the same information and perpetrating activities that can put a kid in an outright danger. In line with this, some social media sites allow users to make their location private, but there are sites that do not offer this possibility. Fortunately, smartphones offer parents the capacity to track their children, which is highly useful in cases of emergency.

Parents should also make sure that their teenagers are not using their phones while driving. It is a fact that texting while driving is one major cause of fatal car accidents. It would be wise for parents to take advantage of plans that offer GPS based technology that eliminates the ability to text while driving by sensing a user's motion and speed.