Smart watches for children - need recommendations

[Wibbli]

I really want to buy my DC a smart watch each which I can use to text them / phone them /track where they are etc (they are 7 and 8 years old and starting to go off with their friends to play in the neighbourhood). I want them to
have independence but I also don’t want them to be uncontactable!

Not long ago, Vodaphone had a smart watch which was something like £7 a month, and you could text, call, set perimeter alerts etc but apparently they’ve stopped selling these.

Can anyone recommend a similar tech watch? I am with EE and husband with 02, in case that makes a difference with what we can get!

TIA ☺️

Not a tech suggestion just a parenting one. If your child can’t be trusted not to wander off don’t let them play out until they are responsible enough to stay in the areas that you have said they can play.

@InThatCaseCanIHaveARaise - they can be trusted?? They go to friends houses and it’s just so I can tell them I need them home??

Then surely you can tell them or whoever’s house they’re at what time they are to be home by.

What did your parents do when you were 7/8? Or are you still at your friends house waiting to hear. Children don’t need tracking.

Oh @InThatCaseCanIHaveARaise You obviously have parenting concerns yourself. I’m not going to explain my needs to you, someone who desperately thinks they know what is best! Please do tell O2 / Vodaphone that their gadgets are not needed. Goodbye!

I’m sorry, it’s not your fault I’ve woken in a mood. I could have been better with my opinion and not such a cow. I hope you find the solution you’re looking for.

We got our 7 year old an Xplora 2 and added it to our EE plan. No internet access etc but we can check location and message/ call both ways. Seems quite sturdy too (so far).

@Wetcappuccino thank you - I had a look at those this morning. They seem quite good - can you set who they can call? It would be either my husband or myself, so only 2 numbers.

I'm afraid I don't have any tech suggestions but some comments above are just stupid. Children don't go from hopeless toddlers who need constant supervision to competent independent beings who never ever forget the time or fail to do what they said they would overnight. Independence is a gradual process and a parent being able to track and or contact their child is a useful part of that. If it stops the parent worrying they are actually more likely to give children that little bit of freedom. My kids didn't really go anywhere on their own until about age 8 or 9 and when they were regularly walking places on their own eg school they had a phone in case of any problem and so I could see where they were. Teenagers and even adults frequently fail to notice the time, get on the wrong bus, or go somewhere different to where they planned etc. Not sure why you would think a 7 or 8 year old should be more reliable so that you can rely on them being where they said and coming home at a given time without contact or tracking.

I'm laughing at possibly the least helpful reply to a question ever 😆😆
Anyway, I'm following this. I bought an Okyuk watch from Amazon which promised all the whistles and bells and was great for the 24 hours that it actually worked. Then the screen froze and that was the end of that.
So I'm looking again.
I'm thinking of going to the 02 shop and seeing if they have any recommendations because all the brands I've looked at have mediocre reviews.

On the Xplora 5 EE have £12 and £10 per month deals.

I’m only asking about the tech watch as my neighbour (DCs best friend) has just had a baby and has a huge garden that they like to play. My neighbour is more than happy for my DCs to play as it keeps the elder child busy whilst she has the baby. So, rather than texting or phoning my friend, I would like to just text or call my DC to make sure they are coming home when I say / come home earlier than planned, without disturbing my friend to go and keep asking my DC.

My DC are incredibly trustworthy and listen and it’s just to make life a bit easier. When I was young (I grew up on the moors!) we were gone all day and my parents had no idea where we where - looking back, I don’t know what they were thinking, but times change!

I also take my DC to a big play park and I watch them, but it’s a good idea to be able to text them and tell them to come back without having to go off and search if I lose sight of them.

But, thank you to those that commented - I also forgot, our school are doing trips to the big city (we are darkest depths of the south) and the school said that we aren’t allowed to phone the children for the whole week they are away, so having a watch like this is going to be a life saver!

im going to check out the Xplora 2 watches as they look good, especially with the tracking

@savehannah I’ve apologised to the OP for my comments. You make some valid points. Without wishing to sound out of touch, and I’m sure I will be told that I am and that times have changed, I’m 51, my children are 23 & 21 they never had a phone until secondary school despite pleading for one in primary. When they went to a friend’s home I had the parent’s contact details so if anything changed I could contact them. Your child can ignore these devices as we know we all have a friend who doesn’t pick up or reply to a message straight away. I would ask you this - you said about why I think a child can make it home without tracking, it’s because I wasn’t tracked and neither were my children and I suspect neither were you or the OP. I appreciate technology moved on and the OP will quite rightly do what they think is best. I shouldn’t have commented to begin with but you live and learn.

We got DD a moochies watch. It has a tracker and there is a list of 5 contacts she can have.
mot does basic text and calls and pics
the quality isn’t amazing, but it does the job.

Whatever the rights and wrongs of this in principle, please do not allow your children to wear smart watches to school. They are very distracting and they are of course banned from exams.

And please do not use them as a way of getting round phone bans. There are good reasons for this:

the school said that we aren’t allowed to phone the children for the whole week they are away, so having a watch like this is going to be a life saver!

@InThatCaseCanIHaveARaise i do appreciate your apology and your reasoning; technology has moved on, both for the good and the bad. I’m not replacing my normal parenting by getting these watches, it’s just an extra fail safe (for instance if they came home later than a time we agreed and, let’s say, their friends wanted to play at a different park - which would hopefully never happen). I want to allow my children to grow and develop their independence but still be able to contact them.

If the school days you can’t phone them whilst they are away they will likely take away the watch too or say they aren’t allowed. You’ll be given contact details to pass on critical messages.

Days -*says

@Stupidbonfire plesse can I ask how much yours was? I’m looking at the one that someone else mentioned, the Xpolora 5 on EE, £10 a month I think. I’m probably just going to
get one for them to share as they’re always together. Just a shame it’s only either black or pink!

Yes - you can set up a list of contacts and an emergency contact (they hold the power button and it automatically sends an alert to the emergency contact). It has an offline/ school mode - but we don’t allow it in school anyway.

@LittleBearPad yes, I checked with the head and she said that as mine have hereditary chronic autoimmune diseases we can keep in touch (likewise, my friends with children with autism can give their children a phone if they prefer). Our school is quite relaxed as we are a small school. But totally understand that some schools reinforce the no phone policy for trips and I wouldn’t send my DC to school with them or on trips without checking with the school first.

DS has an Apple Watch. Got him the SE and it's paired with my phone. Can track him, message him, he can also use it to help him train for his tetrathlons.

@Wetcappuccino thank you - that sounds like a great little watch. My sons are more tech savvy than me, but is it quite easy to use?

@sanityisamyth my sons would love one of those (they’re desperate for the Apple IPhone 13 pro max or whatever it’s called!). Is it a reasonable price per month? I’m thinking now about just getting one watch for the 3 of them (2 twin boys and a girl) as they are always together (same friendship group) and then get their own as they get older / more responsible.