How to stay in touch with your kids without giving them a smartphone?

If you are one of those parents like me who wants to stay in touch with your kids but resists the idea of giving them a smartphone, then you need to read further.

I recently came across Relay Go, which is a screen-free phone for kids. But before I go into the details of a screen-free phone, let me give you my reasoning for delaying the idea of giving my child a smartphone.

Despite being the person who advocates for technology and its potential in improving lives, I am still traditional in believing that children should not be given a smartphone at least until they are 15 years old. Here are my reasoning :

I don’t have to go so far into research, looking at my own device use I recognize how addictive it can be. As a grown adult I need to always make a conscious effort to NOT check my phone.

Now giving such a device to an 8-year-old would not be wise. Smartphone apps are designed for users to use it for a long period of time. The addictive nature of the apps is how tech companies make money out of it.

Exessive screen use have been found to be linked with premature thinning of the cortex. This is the part of the brain that processes information.

Though I know I can control my child not using their phone for seven hours a day, but why go into such battle from a young age. Might as well prevent such things from occurring until they are more mature and have a better sense of self-control.

Facts of about cyberbullying:

Facts about children and online pornography :

Facts about sexting

Sexting is more common that you think. Did you know that 20% of middle schoolers reported having received sexually explicit messages? Here are some other facts about sexting:

Luckily for us, there are responsible tech companies out there who are trying to solve this problem. They understand the importance of keeping in touch with children but also avoid the dangers of a smartphone.

One such companies that I really like is Relay Go.

Relay Go is a screen-free device that allows you to communicate with your kids.

Basically, it is like a walk-talkie with GPS tracking, Geofencing, SOS emergency alerts, Missed Messages, and more, and is synced with the parents’ smartphones via the Relay app.

This device is suitable for kids aged 5 and above.

It is quite simple to use this device. Choose contacts by using the voice assistant feature, push the “talk” button and send the message, just like a walkie-talkie.

Relay Go is simple enough that anyone that is non-tech savvy like grandparents and young kids can use.

You don’t need to dial any number or unlock any screen to use this device. Just simple button presses.

The GPS tracker is especially the most useful function of this device. As a parent of young children, you will definitely want to know where your child is at all time, hence this is a key feature.

You can communicate with just one person on the account through Direct Chats, create a Group Chat that only includes certain people on the account, or everyone on the account. You can have up to 10 Relay devices and multiple smartphones connected to one account.

It is priced at $49.99.

I think this is a very reasonable price. It is the same price as an Echo Dot. And also cheaper than the most basic smartphone.

There is an additional $10/ month for the data plan. Which is just similar to signing up for any phone contract with other service providers.

The short answer to this is YES!

Like herself and many other writers in this space, I agree with that statement.

As an alternative to a smartphone, I would go with a device like Relay Go. I believe in the importance of being able to stay in touch with my child at all times without having to worry about what is on their screen.

Relay Go can be purchased in Target stores and online

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