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Mumsnet users discuss getting their child’s first mobile phone with musicMagpie

289 replies

EllieMumsnet · 05/12/2018 11:50

This activity is now closed

Buying your child their first mobile phone can feel like a big milestone; it’s one of their first steps to becoming a little more independent. With so many different types of phones out there and with a lot of information to sift through on when and how to go about getting your DC their first phone, whether you hand them down their siblings old one, buy a refurbished phone or even get a new one, musicMagpie would love to know your tips, experiences and thoughts on buying your child their first phone.

Here’s what musicMagpie has to say: “With the latest smartphones costing up to £1,000 or more each year, it’s not feasible for many families to be able to afford the latest Tech. You can still get your kids great quality phones without the hefty bill when you buy certified refurbished mobile phones from musicMagpie. You can literally save hundreds of pounds! For example, you could pay £449 for a brand new iPhone 7 or you could save over £170 for a very good condition iPhone 7 with musicMagpie. It’s not just the price – all of our phones comes with a 12 month warranty and go through a thorough 70 point check to make sure they’re in full working order. Here’s how we refurbish our phones. Keep the kids happy and save money… why wouldn’t you?”

What age did you decide to give your child their first phone? Or was it more about them starting secondary school or walking places by themselves that was the deciding factor? Have you/did you ever consider getting them a second hand/refurbished phone? If you did was it a hand-me-down phone from yourself or did you purchase a refurbished one? How did decide which phone was best and what type of package did you get e.g. pay-as-you-go or contract? Have you put any rules in place surrounding the use of their phone? Do you have any tips on where to shop for their first phone?

Whatever your thoughts, tips and/or experiences are, comment them on the thread below and all MNers that do will be entered into a prize draw where one winner will win a £300 voucher of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck with the prize draw!
MNHQ

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Mumsnet users discuss getting their child’s first mobile phone with musicMagpie
OP posts:
andreaca · 24/12/2018 21:07

I got my son a Blackberry when he was 10, his mates had one and I fell for the peer pressure, but I need not have worried he has proved he is trustworthy with a phone, apart from dropping one in a lake on a school trio a few years ago, Id rather he had one than not, so I can get in touch asap if hes out with his friends.

babyloi · 24/12/2018 22:45

I am not QUITE at the point yet, but the pressures have started as friends have been given them by their parents etc. Our thoughts are the moment he is walking to school or ever somewhere we aren't able to see he is safe and well we will give him one. We wold take it away at bedtime so it didn't disturb sleep and we could monitor usage.

VickyRsuperstar · 25/12/2018 00:45

My older kids got a mobile phone when they went to secondary school as they had to travel across London on a bus by themselves along with all their friends and they could let me know if there was any problems or if they were running late etc.
2 of my younger kids got phones very young. I bought my 10 year old a phone when she was 8 as a Christmas gift in the Black Friday sale when she was 8. She was very grown up for her age and she used it to help her search for homework answers. It was on a very cheap contract. My current 8 year old has my old mobile phone as she wanted to play Pokemon Go with me and I keep a more strict eye on what she is doing on it and I take it back every night at bedtime. Again she uses it to search for homework answers too. I always make sure that any child with a contract has the contract capped so they can't go over the limits and run up big bills, also if it's a new phone with a contract then we insure it to avoid issues with loss/theft/breakage.
Most of my kids are very responsible with their phones, but my 15 year old girl is never off hers and often she doesn't get stuff like her room done because she can't leave her phone alone, so I am least happy with the way she uses it. I cannot get the phone off her to help her limit the time she uses it either!

sootyo · 25/12/2018 07:36

A hand me down phone , or a refurbished phone when they start high school.

sadiewoohoo · 25/12/2018 13:17

For my daughters first phone I bought a really old style one from argos with no internet and no camera! It was about 12 pounds but it got her used to the responsibility and trust of having her own phone.

Lisapaige24 · 25/12/2018 14:17

I bought my oldest dd her first phone when she was 11 It was the latest phone out so she could blend in with her friends but she didn’t look after it so the next phone she got she had to use her birthday and Christmas money to buy her own my other children when they got to 11 I got them a basic cheap phone and told them if in 6 months they keep the phone good and looked after it I would get them a phone Of there choice I think kids need to learn to take care of such a valuable item

snare · 25/12/2018 19:00

my daughters got mobiles when they went to middle school. They were given our second hand phones :)

baconbap · 25/12/2018 19:42

not till reach teenage

imrankhanpost · 25/12/2018 22:14

iOS is easier to use; Android gives you more choice.
For a phone's display, color quality and brightness matter more than resolution.
Get at least 32GB of storage.

DiWoo · 25/12/2018 23:16

We got our daughter a phone when she went to secondary school as she was getting the train. We got it from Tesco with our Clubcard vouchers, wish I'd have known about getting a refurbished phone though as we aren't on contracts so we don't get the upgrades which I know a lot of people pass their old phones on to their children

Smellophant87 · 25/12/2018 23:21

I haven't bought my child one yet - I feel he is too young at 5! But I imagine we will get him one when he is at an age when we would consider letting him do things alone - walk to school, go out with friends, stay at clubs unattended etc. I suspect his first one or two will be rather basic models as I wouldn't like to worry of him losing or breaking it.

sweir1 · 25/12/2018 23:24

We bought ours a second hand samsung from Ebay as a trial first

Mariobug25 · 25/12/2018 23:28

I don’t see the problem with kids having refurbished phones.. so long as they come from a reputable place and have been checked thoroughly 😄

runkaterun · 26/12/2018 08:20

Our 4yo won't be getting one until secondary school. I don't see any reason not to try reconditioned phones so many good environmental reasons

Twiglet1983 · 26/12/2018 09:26

Our son is far away from being old enough for a phone, and I hope to keep it like that for as long as possible. Having said that when he’s old enough to go out without one of us then perhaps I’ll feel differently. I think there’s a lot of peer pressure for teenagers too, to have a phone.

noynoyavery · 26/12/2018 09:31

Consider if it is appealing enough to be stolen, Sadly we live in a not great area, theft and bullying happens a lot here. A refurb or mum.dads old one is good enough. He also does chores for phone credit but he's almost 13 now.

Ethan260908 · 26/12/2018 11:16

My son (10yrs old) can have my Nokia 3310, that should put him off phones for life [sic].

piggypoo · 26/12/2018 13:37

Don't give in to cries, blackmail and tears, as they will want the same phone as their friends, which usually entails, spending about a grand, as it has to be a certain colour, style etc. No way, we bought a couple of refurbished phones, and use Giffgaff,they are great, they sell new and second hand phones too, so well worth a look.

Blondie1982 · 26/12/2018 15:37

We've given ours a basic phone for their first one, it's purely for safety reasons i.e being in contact when needed

PhilTB54 · 26/12/2018 17:11

Cast offs from us . Used the " Factory Reset option " to erase ALL info and old apps. Not only speeded up the phones but system update after reset made them run much much better.

Bequinha213 · 26/12/2018 17:16

I am about to upgrade my phone so I am planning to give my 3 year old iPhone to my daughter that will be 10 very soon.
Inially the plan was to buy a new phone when was time for her to go to secondary school but since I will have a spare phone very soon she can have it!

Jocelynne123 · 26/12/2018 18:13

I bought a second hand phone that was still the same as her friends. We might think it's daft but it's important for children to fit in and have the same as their friends. A nice case and nobody knew it wasn't second hand. I put a cap on her spending so she could only go £5 over her limit and with the app on my phone and hers I could keep track of her spending. It actually helped her be responsible because she would look at what she had left xx

Emmamaryd · 26/12/2018 18:37

Children seem to get phones at a very young age these days. They are useful for if they need to speak to you though

Minnibix · 26/12/2018 21:54

I think 10 or 11 is about the right age for a mobile phone, even then I dont think they realise how expensive they are, so I think a refurbished phone is best for the first phone

helcrai · 26/12/2018 22:12

I got DD1 her first mobile phone when she started at secondary school at 11 and had to walk there and back so needed to know she was safe. I didn't consider a second hand one as was worried it might be a false economy and not last long so went for a cheap smartphone bought outright. We set it up with a £3.99 a month basic phone SIM so mins/texts were limited. We set rules about what apps she could download (Instagram only when she reached 13; WhatsApp just to keep in touch with friends). She is only allowed 1 hour a day screen time and we can check the phone at any time.
We went on the internet to study phone specs and source a reasonably priced model. We found a less popular brand had the same spec but was much cheaper than the big brand names.