UK MNer with a child aged 7-11? Testers needed to try out new smartphone for kids - £300 voucher to be won! NOW CLOSED

[EllieMumsnet]

We have been asked by Monqi, to find 20 MNers with a child aged 7-11 who hasn’t owned a mobile phone before, to test out their new smart phone, specifically developed for children. All parents also need to have their own smartphone, - to manage what their child does on their phone.

Monqi is a brand new mobile phone for kids which will launch on October 1st.

Here’s what Monqi had to say: “When should I buy my child a mobile phone? How do I keep them safe online? What about the costs? And what games are appropriate? Monqi is the revolutionary new mobile for kids which addresses parental concerns while giving children a phone they want. Monqi, Stay Close.”

If selected to take part, your child will get an Android smartphone with games, messaging, internet and Apps.

You will be sent the smartphone along with an active SIM card that includes the following - valid for one month from activation: 150 mins calls, 5000 texts and 1GB data. (note: if there is any “suspect” use eg international Calls, Premium Rate Calls etc, the SIM may get barred).

If selected, you and your child will need to test out the smartphone for 2 weeks making use of all of its features. Testers will have help and support from the mobile network during this time if needed.

Once the trial is over the SIM will be cancelled, but you will be able to keep the smartphone.

Selected testers will be required to leave feedback on a thread as well as completing a short survey. All who give the required feedback will be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 voucher of their choice (from a list). This test will take place in September so please only apply if you’re around during this month and are able to give feedback then.

If you’d like to take part, please add your details here
We will be in touch with those selected.

Thanks and good luck!

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs apply

No response from Monqi despite 2 emails. DD cannot call any one from it and I can't call her as it comes up with null number in the app on my phone and a message saying no credit on dd's phone. We've not made one call so I assume a sim error.

Geo fence doesn't work as no notification when she left the area.

DD was worried she was using up data but there's no option to check how much data is left?

Also apps like Spotify require an email address which DD is too young to have, if she's truthful when setting one up. No colour switch app either.

Anyone know how we back up photos? There are some which DD would like to keep and isn't sure how to get them onto our cloud network.

Hello

@MrsArchchancellorRidcully Monqi have seen your comments and have said:

"Hi mrsArchchancellorRidcully,

Sorry that we have not gotten back to you. Please write us again at [email protected] and I will respond immediately."

Ridcully we had a problem with the SIM, I messaged Monqi via FB and they sorted it out the same day. We've tested and DD can now call me/I can call her.

Trying to convince her to walk somewhere on her own to test the geofence, but she's not willing to leave the house in today's weather tbh :o

DD wants there to be a skins editor for Minecraft available, though she hasn't checked to see if there is one yet as she forgot to charge her phone last night.

we had a problem with the SIM too, looks like some of them weren't activated before being sent out, but they did fix it quickly.

The battery life is abysmal, we didn't use the phone yesterday as DD forgot to take it to my mum's with her, and it went from 100% to around 30% whilst literally doing nothing.

DD moaned today that You Tube cut out after an hour . I forgot I had done that, as I played around with a few settings.

Have had an email from Monqi today, so going to check those things later.

Sorry that we have not gotten back to you. Please write us again at [email protected] and I will respond immediately."

I'm a bit cynical about the facts that complaints / queries from mumsnet posters seem to be treated differently to the general unwashed. ... Surely to properly test the service they should be going through the standard support channels?

Hi everyone,

Here is an update from Monqi:

"Dear Mumsnet testers,

So clearly the biggest requests are proper notifications for new messages and accuracy of geolocation. For geolocation, we notice that the accuracy is fine for most users, so we will investigate why some are experiencing incorrect locations.

Another request was the selection of apps/games in monqi Jungle. There are several reasons why we opted not to include Google Play, such as the range of unfiltered (and potentially inappropriate) apps and credit card registration that opens up the risk of in-app purchases. However, considering your feedback, we are contemplating releasing Google Play on the monqi phone. We would like to hear your feedback if you are comfortable with letting DD/DS access Google Play, considering the fact that you can still Approve any app they download, as well as put any restrictions in place on that app. What are your thoughts?

Mumsnet Testing Task:
In case you haven’t already tested it, we’d like to hear your feedback on the Scheduling feature. You can allow/forbid SMSes, calls, apps for various timeframes such as School, Homework, Nighttime, etc. For more information on how to set it up, please visit: monqi.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/115000821811-Scheduling-tailor-the-profile-of-the-phone-for-e-g-school
As one tester noted, if you add several intervals please make sure you enter them chronologically, otherwise you will receive a message about overlapping times.

If you have any questions please reach us at [email protected] or check out our support site at: monqi.zendesk.com. "

Firstly, I am really pleased Monqi are actually listening to feedback. I have been involved in a number of other product tests on mumsnet and have never actually felt listened to but this time I do!

Secondly, 100% yes to allowing access to google play. We as parents have complete control over what our children download anyway. I would much prefer the choice of a full range of apps available.

I have never used google play as have iphone and have never looked at any other apps, are there some good games for kids on there?

Someone asked about the photos.
When I connected the phone to laptop nothing popped up like you would expect when a device is connected.
So we've WhatsApp them to me which is ridiculous.

Does anyone know if WhatsApp is the only way to send pictures? It won't do it via message

I think whatsapp is the only way. We just tried to send a photo, but couldn't, so have resorted to whatsapp.

I have been charging mine through the computer and it is doing that, but it just says that device failed to install, so it won't connect like an iphone will.

Just tried to set a schedule. Worked well for school timings but for night time it won't let me set the time interval from 9pm to 7am as the end time can't be earlier than the start. So that's one to sort.

Personally I've been locking the phone from 8pm till 7am anyway.

Firstly, thanks to Monqi for allowing us to be one of your testers. My DD (age 7) is the youngest age the phone is aimed for and I was interested to see how she responded given that she's nagged me for her own phone for ages! I would say that there are more limitations for a 7 year old as they are still of an age where they view everything as a 'toy' rather than a phone. However, we are encouraging her to take 'responsibility' and it's been a great learning tool for her. I anticipate giving her more freedoms in this coming year, such as staying overnight at a friend's house and a mobile will be of benefit when she isn't in my or the DH's immediate care.

So, my feedback so far...

Initially, I had a problem linking the phones and I contacted Monqi support late evening - they sorted it out the following morning which was very efficient of them (problem had been my outdated Android system).

What I like: setting individual time restrictions for each app and approving every downloaded app before my DD can use it. It's great that the child can only contact trusted/approved adults.

What my DD likes: personalising phone (ie. setting display pics etc), taking photos and videos, setting up upcoming events in her calendar, downloading apps and playing games. She also asked if she can get a phone case (will Monqi be producing this sort of accessory longer term?). She also loves to send me photos in her txt messages, and we've also successfully used the bluetooth option for picture sharing.

What we don't like: the battery drain! Even with relatively limited use, it requires charging within a period of fewer than 24 hours which can be frustrating for the child. We also have had problems with phone-calls between DD's phone and mine or hubby's. I expect this is a network problem with coverage being an issue at home. We will test this out in various outside locations in the next few days though.

I haven't noticed a problem with geolocation but will monitor that aspect.

As requested, above, my DD and I will explore the scheduling aspect further.

Re. GooglePlay - for my 7yo DD, this isn't an app we miss because I would rather she didn't see any unsuitable content. However, as she gets older then she might want this sort of app. Either way, having parental control of apps means that Monqi might want to consider the 'older age group' apps at this early stage to please all users. Personally, I would love to see the new BBC iPlayer Kids app available in the Monqi store.

I think if you want to appeal to the older ones then yes to Google play, they will still need parent permission so I think it's a good idea. Battery life is not good! We've just done the update and rebooted but texts still only coming through via the app? Anyone else found the same?

Yes to appeal more to older ones, google play. My 11 year old hates the phone because of the limitations. Said he'd be better off with my old brick Nokia. In terms of smart phones doesn't seem to offer much.

Will try the update and see how it is afterwards.

We did the update and now when he texts me I do get an alert. On my iPhone I can change the alert tone to either a banner or an alert which stays on screen until I do something. However, there is no sound alert I checked my iPhone settings and I have sound turned on. So it does rely on me looking at my phone to see he has texted me. Where as with other texts or whatsapp, I will hear a sound to tell me someone has texted me.

We did the update and now when he texts me I do get an alert. On my iPhone I can change the alert tone to either a banner or an alert which stays on screen until I do something. However, there is no sound alert I checked my iPhone settings and I have sound turned on. So it does rely on me looking at my phone to see he has texted me. Where as with other texts or whatsapp, I will hear a sound to tell me someone has texted me.

My monqi app is showing 2 notifications but when I go into the app there doesn't appear to be anything there.

Outnumbered - this is since when update. Now it notifies of any activity at all. Really irritating. So if my son is bouncing around between apps, texting etc I can see upwards of 20 notifications listed. Why??? I think it should just show a notification if it is something that needs action - a text from the child or an approval waiting. Otherwise I am just going to ignore the notifications completely!

Quick question- I'm an Apple user so struggling a bit with the basics of an android phone. How do you close apps which are presumably running in the background?

You don't need to close them, they will close themselves if phone is running low on RAM. If you wanted to you could go into settings -> apps and then "force close" the app. Alternatively if there is a button that shows all currently open apps you should be able to swipe them closed.

Disclaimer: this is on standard android, may be different in a Monqi

You have no access to the app stack on monqi to be able to swipe to close apps which is a huge issue for battery.

Here is the list we have compiled of apps we want to see in the jungle store. However, we still firmly are in favour of access to google play. (These are in no particular order)

Chess with Friends
Calendar
Amazon Music
Avast Mobile Security
BBC Bitesize+iPlayer+News+Weather
Citymapper
Duolingo
Crossy Road
PAC-MAN256
Play Music (+other google pre-installed apps, eg. Translate)
Player FM
Pocket
Skype

Crossy road is on there wiifitmama.