iPhones & kids...

[Aunt]

My Niece's "cool" uncle gave her an iphone for her birthday in march. As those of you with one would be aware, it has unlimited access to the internet. Given that this was her first birthday without her mother we wanted to detract attention from this and spoil her a little.
However.....I was quietly non plussed by this choice of gift even if it did make him the coolest adult in the world. This was because We have just spent a lot of time and energy negotiating sensible limits on internet use and the level to which I monitor her.I managed to stall her use of it by lying and saying there was an issue getting it activated. But it now is up and running and being used by her. Obviously this is a much coveted item which means a lot to her so I dont feel it is fair to take it off her as she has not done anything to warrrant punishment and this is how it would be seen. So what do ppl suggest? does anyone else have a kid with an i phone? If so what limits do you place on it's use particularly with regard to the internet?

 

[musicmom]

Nope it wouldnt happen in my house. They will get a cell phone but it will be limited and they will have to pay for their minutes OR I will be checking the bill to see who they are calling.
The uncle was very irresponsible by not asking you first. I would be upset by that.

 

[fallon]

I think I would be nervous about the unlimited internet. Also about such a young girl with such and expensive item, I worry about her losing it. I wish I had some kind of suggestion for you but maybe some people with older children will be able to help more

 

[Aunt]

Nope it wouldnt happen in my house. They will get a cell phone but it will be limited and they will have to pay for their minutes OR I will be checking the bill to see who they are calling.
The uncle was very irresponsible by not asking you first. I would be upset by that.

Well ideally it wouldnt in mine either. but i feel like what is done is done. in terms of the minutes she had a cellphone before this (mainly for safety rsns) we have an agreement as to how much she may rack up without having to kick in with her own allowance money. this seems in line with her friends, i plan to continue this with the iphone. So far she has been pretty good and i feel it is teaching her about managing a budget.
It is the wifi function & he fact that she can download any entertainment of her choosing without much supervision that i am not comfortable with. is there a parental control function you can get for them?

 

[Claire64]

My oldest son has an iPhone, he bought it himself a couple of months ago. He loves it and uses it for everything he needs. It's great for him because it has a Maps feature that is useful when he's driving around. My son is mature enough that we don't have to set any limits on his internet use. How old is your niece? I don't think there are any parental controls on the iPhone, but maybe you could completely disconnect the internet from the phone?

 

[jtee]

I don't have one iPhone, but a few people I work with do, and they say using the phone to browse the Internet is horribly slow, so slow they use it very little or not at all. For those who remember the days of dial-up, that is what I've been told it is like.

 

[Aunt]

My son is mature enough that we don't have to set any limits on his internet use. How old is your niece?

She is 12. I would say a 16 yr old is mature enough to surf away unsupervised as well. Particularly if they care considered mature enough to get behind the wheels of a car. But 12 is too young.

 

[jtee]

Aunt, what are you concerned about her doing while surfacing the Internet?

We have a 12 year old and we have some restrictions such as she can not provide personal info to websites without consulting with us. If a site has some kind of user agreement, we have to see it first. But over all, we don't block any sites or stand over her shoulder every time she uses the Internet.

 

[PennQuaker09]

Well, I've used my iPhone to read the forum, but there really isn't a whole lot one can do with it, as far as the internet is concerned. My only stipulation would be that when she goes to school, the iPhone stays at home. I would hate for it to get lost or stolen, because I don't think they are covered by the wireless insurance plan.

 

[musicmom]

Penn don't lie, you know you are shopping on that phone!

 

[PennQuaker09]

To be honest, I prefer my Samsung BlackJack II more.

 

[Claire64]

I called AT&T this morning because I'm thinking about getting my 12 year old an iPhone as well, but like you said about your niece, 12 isn't old enough to surf the internet without any restrictions. The person I talked to told me that there is an option called "Smart Limits" for $4.99 a month that lets a parent control what the child can do on an iPhone. You should look into it.

 

[Aunt]

Great suggestion claire. Solves a lot of my woes.

 

[PennQuaker09]

I will be the first to admit that I had a rather cushy upbringing, but I just can't see getting a 12 - 15 year old a $400 phone.

 

[Aunt]

yeah again I ould not get it for her but as she has it now it is too late i think. Still when ipods came out a lot of kids got them and they are pretty expensive