Anonymous wrote:If she is just going to call and text she doesn't need a fancy fragile iPhone. You want a little cheap phone that just calls and texts.

Oh, and for a cheap flexible plan, Consumer Cellular.

If she is just going to call and text she doesn't need a fancy fragile iPhone. You want a little cheap phone that just calls and texts.

Check out Twigby.com. My kid has had it for a year now. Cheap plans and phone. Great cell service.

I got my daughter an old iPhone SE off Swappa for $70. It's like eBay but just for electronics. If you go that route, look for someone with high ratings and pictures of the actual phone you're buying. A lot of the sellers are cell phone shops and they post a generic image of the model of phone you're getting. I picked a guy who had actual pictures of the phone and the battery life/charge cycles of the used phone from the settings screen. It's lasted about 7 months so far, so I'm happy.

We purchased a used iPhone 7 and have them on a Mint plan - unlimited calls, text, and you can select what level of data you want to pay for. We paid for one-year (best rate) after the intro rate.

iPhone SE 2020

You might also ask any family if they have a plan and you can add your kid to an existing family plan. For example we have T-Mobile (4 people) and got a 5th person free with a phone, which we gave to my father-in-law and he is now a free-rider on our plan.

Anonymous wrote:I’ll go against the others and say an iPhone. My 12 yo had the iPhone XR. I like the screen time controls that come with iPhones. I can easily restrict anything and only allow talk and text to certain contacts during certain hours. It is still an iPhone so he still can have apps but I control when, how and for how long. I like the find my iPhone feature so I know where he is when he’s out on his bike. I don’t need to use it much but it’s peace of mind as he’s getting older and venturing further from home. You can block anything you want, even the camera. It’s nice that you can slowly give them access as you want to.

I agree. I bought my kid an older style iPhone and I love the family settings. Anytime my kid tries to download an app , a notification comes up on my phone asking me to approve it, if it’s not approved it will not download on her phone. You can shut the phone down at a certain time if you don’t want them using it. It has worked great for us and we didn’t have to download any special apps for parental controls, it’s automatically on the phone.

this year, I can block basically everything. Bright spot

I have visible wireless. $25/month for unlimited everything if you have 4 people on the plan (everyone pays their own bill). Reddit has a page to find people to join a plan if you don’t have additional family members to add. Visible has phones for as low as $80.

The truth is that kids are able to access things they shouldn’t no matter what kind of controls or limits you put on there. Talk to your teens constantly about making good choices, let them know you can and will check on their usage on phones and computer history, and keep an open line of communication as much as you can. I teach high school, and you can’t realistically block access to things—they always find a work around if they are motivated to do so.

I’ll go against the others and say an iPhone. My 12 yo had the iPhone XR. I like the screen time controls that come with iPhones. I can easily restrict anything and only allow talk and text to certain contacts during certain hours. It is still an iPhone so he still can have apps but I control when, how and for how long. I like the find my iPhone feature so I know where he is when he’s out on his bike. I don’t need to use it much but it’s peace of mind as he’s getting older and venturing further from home. You can block anything you want, even the camera. It’s nice that you can slowly give them access as you want to.

I second a Tracfone.

a tracfone. As of a year ago, they still had flip phones. That is all my teen is going to have until she can afford her own phone.

we've already dealt with a sexting situation (during lockdown using one of our defunct iPhones), so it is going to be a damn long time before my teen has access to any mobile devices.

Check out Gabb Wireless. They have phones that do not allow any social media apps.

I haven’t bought a phone in a decade since work gives me one. I have no idea about plans, contract vs no contract, reputable place to buy device, used vs new etc. Trying not to spend a fortune but also get something reliable that allows my DD to do what the typical 12yo does with a phone (call occasionally and text). Help!