what age should kids get a cell phone?

[cantthinkofanything]

let's hear it...

I don't have a clue. A few years ago, I would have said when they can pay for it themselves.

But I can see the convenience of a kid having one at younger ages.

[Blake]

My 9 year old has a base flip phone I pay $5 a month extra to share minutes with unlimited text. She hardly uses it and I have to force her to take it.

A smart phone on the other hand.....dunno.

[Reck]

I think 14 is the right age.

[Lincoln]

Late middle school...7th or 8th grade. Nothing fancy, just a basic flip phone. Although where I'm from, I see a lot of 5th graders carrying iPhones

[cantthinkofanything]

My 9 year old has a base flip phone I pay $5 a month extra to share minutes with unlimited text. She hardly uses it and I have to force her to take it.

A smart phone on the other hand.....dunno.

yeah...she wouldn't want to carry the flip phone either. was thinking of giving her my old Iphone since I've got an upgrade due. And the only reason I'm considering it is that we've got a line that isn't being used right now that we're paying for.

But still having a hard time doing it. And can't really figure out why.

I know she'll text more than call but am somewhat concerned about the reports showing that cell phone usage can cause some tumors or something.

[cantthinkofanything]

Are your kids drug dealers?

not yet

[Reck]

Late middle school...7th or 8th grade. Nothing fancy, just a basic flip phone. Although where I'm from, I see a lot of 5th graders carrying iPhones

Are they even making cheap flip phones nowadays?

My spoiled little niece has a prepaid sidekick.

That's the next safe thing imo. Showcasing an iPhone is a dangerous shit for a kid.

[Blake]

yeah...she wouldn't want to carry the flip phone either. was thinking of giving her my old Iphone since I've got an upgrade due. And the only reason I'm considering it is that we've got a line that isn't being used right now that we're paying for.

But still having a hard time doing it. And can't really figure out why.

I know she'll text more than call but am somewhat concerned about the reports showing that cell phone usage can cause some tumors or something.

Yeah I thought about giving her my current phone when I get an upgrade, but then I see how much the data plan costs just to run an android phone and that thought goes away.

[bus driver]

as soon as they can talk, preferably a smart phone.

with the increased amount of weirdos in this city and elsewhere, u can never leave it to chance

[cantthinkofanything]

Well I think what we have here is the solution. Get them the cell phones around the time you start training them to deal to support you and your wife's coke habits and her dick habit.

idk...was just thinking about the convenience of being able to get a hold of my daughter when she's with friends.

[cantthinkofanything]

Yeah I thought about giving her my current phone when I get an upgrade, but then I see how much the data plan costs just to run an android phone and that thought goes away.

that's a damn fine point. at home she's been using some kind of text for free app on her ipad or using Scramble With Friends but my guess is she'd bust any data plan

[DarrinS]

As soon as they can show they can be responsible for it -- say 11, 12

[cantthinkofanything]

IDK..aren't children more vulnerable to the harmful effects of radiation? Don't the cell phone companies specifically state to limit exposure in children? You may be a dumbass son of a bitch, but I wouldn't wish any harm on kids so it's something to think about you wouldn't want them to end up as dumb as you.

I mentioned this earlier and that is a concern. But I think she would rarely use the phone itself and communicate mostly by text.

You're being quite the cocksucker today. Is this about circumcision?

[DisAsTerBot]

18 or when they can pay for it themselves. Before then pretty much everyone around them should have a phone they can use in an emergency

[Sense]

17.. and if you let them know that's the age, they probably won't wait and will try to get a job around 16 just to get it.. and that's good.

[cantthinkofanything]

Again, you do realize that the thing radiates all the time, not just when it's pressed up against your head right? Keeping it in your pocket gives you just as much exposure, just to a different body part. You actually get the most radiation not when you're talking on the phone, but when you're driving in the car as you pass from tower to tower and the phone is working to maintain connection.

hmmm...

tbh, it's something I'm aware of but don't think about. If I'm in a car or sitting down, I don't ever have my cell phone in my pocket anyway.

What do you think about all the wifi hotspots? Harmful?

I mean, at some point, something is always passing through your body.

[mrsmaalox]

My kids got their phones when they went into middle school. That was about the time they started being able to hang out with friends on their own and going to social events. They've all 3 been responsible with them, we've never had any trouble with overages of time or texts. I made it clear from the beginning that I pay for their phones for my convenience, not theirs. They cannot leave the house without their phones, and when I call I expect to be answered immediately or they lose the phone (which means not going anywhere). After all the hours I spent waiting outside of friends houses, movie theaters, basketball and band/orch practices, giving them their own phones transformed my life! ;)

[bus driver]

My kids got their phones when they went into middle school. That was about the time they started being able to hang out with friends on their own and going to social events. They've all 3 been responsible with them, we've never had any trouble with overages of time or texts. I made it clear from the beginning that I pay for their phones for my convenience, not theirs. They cannot leave the house without their phones, and when I call I expect to be answered immediately or they lose the phone (which means not going anywhere). After all the hours I spent waiting outside of friends houses, movie theaters, basketball and band/orch practices, giving them their own phones transformed my life! ;)

your kids dont need a cell phone they need a car :wakeup

[cantthinkofanything]

there's a whole school of science that believes all that is fucking with is in little ways and causing all kinds of strange disorders and sleep disorders, so yeah shit is definitely having an impact it's just we don't really know much about it.

well, I doubt that the big money is going to support any kind of studies showing how bad it really is.

[Drachen]

I think 14 is the right age.

This is the rule we have. My step daughter tried for years, even convincing her grandparents to get her one for her 13th birthday (despite the fact that we told her that age 14 is our rule), so we told them that it would be fine if they got it for her, we would take it away from her and give it back to her one year later... They waited until the following year.

[mrsmaalox]

your kids dont need a cell phone they need a car :wakeup

And a driver!

[SA210]

How old were all of us when we all got our cell phones?

I think we all survived as children without them.

[Blake]

I think we all survived as children without them.

I'm thinking you're wrong.

[lakerhaterade]

I'm thinking you're wrong.

So you didn't survive? Sucks to be you.

[DMC]

When they can pay for it.

[Blake]

So you didn't survive? Sucks to be you.

Bads.

[Reck]

I'm thinking you're wrong.

Please expand on this.

[lakerhaterade]

Bads.

You set yourself up for that exchange.

[DMC]

Blake is saying plenty here had cell phones when growing up, thus the "we all" statement was wrong. Had it been said that "those of us without cell phones all survived", that would be accurate. Everyone here survived all of their issues, regardless what they were.

[The Reckoning]

i was 16 (because i started driving) and still have yet to purchase a smart phone. call and text is all i need.

i see these 8-10 year olds with smart phones or ipads and want to take their parents behind the shed.

[Avante]

Not about age, it's about responsibilty/maturity.

[Latarian Milton]

i say kids should carry cellphones as soon as they can dial 911, just imagine what a terrible situation it'd be if your kid got kidnapped w/o a means of calling for help, and think how much change would've been made by a cellphone.

[Reck]

i say kids should carry cellphones as soon as they can dial 911, just imagine what a terrible situation it'd be if your kid got kidnapped w/o a means of calling for help, and think how much change would've been made by a cellphone.

A cellphone is not going to help you in those situations.

Do you really think a kidnapper is not going to check for a cellphone? Specially nowadays? C'mon :lol

[The Reckoning]

careful you might get bent over det knee and spanked imho


only if its a milf tbh

[ploto]

First day of high school.

[Wild Cobra]

let's hear it...

I don't have a clue. A few years ago, I would have said when they can pay for it themselves.

But I can see the convenience of a kid having one at younger ages.
I would say at least by the time they are dating. I would suggest it depends on what you allow them to do. If you are strict about them going out, then they might not need on till they can pay for it themselves. I got both my kids cell phones when they started going out places with their friends in the evening.

[cantthinkofanything]

i was 16 (because i started driving) and still have yet to purchase a smart phone. call and text is all i need.

i see these 8-10 year olds with smart phones or ipads and want to take their parents behind the shed.

what's wrong with a kid having an Ipad? How is that different than a computer or video game system?

technology scare caveman?

[Trill Clinton]

around 9 or 10..... basically whenever they start participating in extra curricular activities.