*Advertorial Feature With IMO*

If you’re a parent of a child capable of speaking, then I am sure you will have heard the requests to have a phone of their own.

My eldest daughter was asking for a phone from the age of about 5-6 years and my son who is a little later has just started asking now he is 8.

Mobile phones hold so much appeal to our kids, younger children want to play the games, and older kids wanting to indulge in social networking. Trouble is, that opens up a whole can of worms of its own.

Having said that, there’s a lot to be said for being able to keep in touch with your child. Organising to pick your kids up becomes easier and less troublesome, and obviously the benefits of being able to Google for any homework is a bonus. So, what is the right age for a mobile phone, and how do you know when your child is ready?

What the industry says

According to the great Bill Gates, he didn’t give his children phones until they turned 14. That may seem rather old for a child to receive its first phone, particularly seeing as it’s not uncommon to see primary aged children calling their parents as they leave the school gate. But I think its more important to only give a phone when I child is callable of using it for its intended purpose.

In fact, according to Ofcom’s most recent report, 1% of the under fives already have their own smartphone. This rises to 5% in the age five to seven bracket, and 35% when they get to age eight to 11. By age 12 – 15, this is up to 83%.

Research shows that the average age for children be given mobile phones is 10.3 years old. That’s down from age 12 in 2016. Ultimately, there’s no hard and fast rule about when a child needs a phone, so we need to look at other indicators to decide when the time is right.

Age versus maturity

In some ways, it’s not so much about a defining age which makes a phone appropriate, but more about how mature our children are. Looking for signs that they’re ready to be more responsible is a great place to start, such as:

• Being on time when you’re picking them up
• Not losing their personal belongings
• Adhering to rules about bedtime and screen time
• Doing homework without a fuss
• Being mature enough to understand internet safety
• Coming home when they say they will

Having a generally good level of responsibility around other things in their life bodes well for mobile phone ownership and should give you some confidence that they’re probably ready for their own device.

Need versus want

The next thing to consider is why they might need a mobile phone. Of course they want one, that’s a given, but other than winning brownie points as an awesome parent, are there actual reasons that a mobile phone is needed?

If they’re simply into playing mobile games, then a tablet offers the same functionality, and with an even bigger screen. Because most tablets rely on Wi-Fi for connectivity, this will give you additional control over what they see and can access on the internet, using parental controls built into your router.

However, if they need to be in touch with you for safety reasons, or you think a phone would benefit them socially, then it might be a better choice.

Phones From IMO

With Joshua on the cusp of starting his phone journey we have been looking at 2 options for him at the moment, Both from IMO.

IMO Q2 Plus 2019

We have been loving the look of the newest offering from IMO, a challenger mobile brand by Verve Connect have launched their IMO Q2 Plus 2019.

The new 2019 edition comes with the choice of two awesome colours – Love Pink available from Argos at ￡40 and the True Blue available from Vodafone at ￡37 making them ideal for a pocket friendly smart phones. I

t comes with some amazing features with updated finish and colours and even comes with a face unlock function using facial recognition system.

It has a long lasting battery life with a 15 days standby time and comes with 4g connectivity which is great for browsing the web, social media and sharing content online.

The Q2 Plus 2019 supports Google Android Go, allowing customers to magnify their Google experience and increasing the performance and speed of their phones. It also supports 1GB RAM & 8GB ROM with expandable memory to 32GB via Micro SD card slot, Bluetooth, GPS, and proximity sensor.

IMO S2 with monqi

For a more restricted phone for your pre teen we have been so excited by this phone that this is the phone we have bought for Joshua for Christmas. 

We bought this as a pay as you go option with Tesco Mobile for £80. There are options to purchase this as a pay monthly option with several retailers too.

The IMO S2 with monqi is designed to give children the ideal first state phone with phone and message facilities but also in a more restricted format so child friendly apps and phone tracking provide peace of mind.

Although we are not advocating using a mobile phone for pre teens we are wanting to give Joshua more freedom and as part of that he needs to be contactable and so this phone will make a great addition and being able to track it is a total bonus. 

We intend to allow him a set amount of time on his phone while in the house and the remote lock function is ideal to lock it down when he isn’t supposed to be using it.

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