[greeneyedmonster]

Do you think someone under 18 should own a smart phone? What reason would a child need a bb or any smart phone for? If it is so your children can have the newest thing is it all worth it in the end? A minor should have a cell to call home and friends on but nothing more. No text, no video, or camera on the phone no matter how mature the CHILD seems. Plus with all the side effects of texting on your nervous system, are you as a parent going to overlook these potential life long illiness just so your child looks cool? As a parent of 3 kids I will not sacrifice their health for their social status.

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[amazinglygraceless]

A phone? Yes. Texting? Limited. Camera? No.
A smartphone? Absolutely not. When They get a job they can
get one on their own.

[Username0223]

I agree with AG-want a smart phone-get a job and pay your own way! I'll give the basics to my kids (5) they all have cells-thats as far as it goes here!

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[Username00089]

I don't think kids deserve anything.

[greeneyedmonster]

I agree with shelli, my oldest is 10 and the most cell he will get till he gets a job is a firefly.

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[Milamber]

A phone? Yes. Texting? Limited. Camera? No.
A smartphone? Absolutely not. When They get a job they can
get one on their own.

Why no camera?

[amazinglygraceless]

Why no camera?

Because I do not want to think of kids taking pictures of their bodies and
sending them to someone they think they can trust only to find out they
should not have.

[Milamber]

Because I do not want to think of kids taking pictures of their bodies and
sending them to someone they think they can trust only to find out they
should not have.

Raise your kids right and this shouldnt happen... But if they do send pictures to someone then its their own fault if he or she shows everyone...

No too sounds callouse but i laughed at that girl who topped herself after that guy showed pictures of her to people... It was her own fault.

[greeneyedmonster]

The same reason a 9 year old is charged with cell phone pornography. Case closed. But my other post on here goes more in depth why. Here is for a yes they should or no they shouldn't.

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[Tylerd]

I am 16, and have had a Blackberry for a few years. But I also have had a job for the last two.

[amazinglygraceless]

Raise your kids right and this shouldnt happen... But if they do send pictures to someone then its their own fault if he or she shows everyone...

I raised my daughter very well, thank you very much.
And she does the same with her two children.
But the reality is that when she was young I was
not always with her. To think the things you
teach your children will ALWAYS survive the outside
world is akin to have one's head firmly planted in one's a$$.

[greeneyedmonster]

Tlyerd your should read is the minor at fault or the parents? And comment since you are a underage bb user.

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[Milamber]

I raised my daughter very well, thank you very much.
And she does the same with her two children.
But the reality is that when she was young I was
not always with her. To think the things you
teach your children will ALWAYS survive the outside
world is akin to have one's head firmly planted in one's a$$.

I never said you raised them poorly so get off your high horse.

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[pkcable]

Settle down folks! Ultimately its up to the parents, and diffrent children mature at different rates. Some may be ready for a smart phone at 10 (unlikely but possible) and some may NOT be ready for a firefly at 16. Its up to the parents to PARENT.

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[greeneyedmonster]

Still why would a child need a smart phone for? A cell ok but a bb or iphone or anything more then a simple cell is beyond me why a child should have one.

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[-LiA-]

I think giving a child a smart phone is way too much. I can see maybe giving a 10 year old a regular cell phone for emergencies, but IMO they shouldn't be texting until maybe 16. Kids can get into trouble just from texting alone (plus it is a huge distraction and if they do it in school it'll just get taken away) so imagine if they had a phone where they could browse the internet and take pictures. It is not necessary and is just asking for trouble. You can use the argument if you raise them right they won't do something wrong...but really...that has nothing to do with it. People get curious and do things even if they have a feeling it might be wrong. Would you give a kid a gun just because you've explained to them a thousand times that they are dangerous? I don't think so. Why make trouble easier to find?

[roeod4]

Personally, I think that it depends on the kid and it depends on the parent. There are some kids that could actually use them. I have a little cousin that is in 7th grade (age 13) at a very nice private school. I have seen some of her school work and it reminds me of the stuff I was doing in college. I have also seen how overloaded she is with school work and projects. My aunt bought her a Pearl for her 13th birthday and she uses it to stay organized. She uses it more for it's original intended purpose than I think most of us do. She has a gmail account that is for school set up on it and her personal account is left off. She uses the calendar and tasks to keep track of papers and projects. In short, this isn't a social device for her, it is more of a tool. I am sure that some socializing goes on with it, but she doesn't have any of the social apps like facebook or twitter and I know that it has helped with her grades.

She may be an unusual kid, I know she is more goal oriented than I was at that age, but it works very well for her. Her parents have already had the nude picture talk with her too.

[ginya-san]

I got my first cell phone when I was 15 right after I got my first job. It was one of those old Nokia bricks and it was prepaid and I bought the minutes. After I started driving at 16 my mother finally gave me a Motorola V60i no texts just calls and she graciously paid for it. I went through a few phone changes got text and then when I turned 18 she booted me off and it's been my phone and my plan ever since.

On the subject of kids having them I get tons of creepy PM's and BBM people asking for stuff that they shouldn't I can't imagine these creeps going after 13 year old girls with self esteem issues. My children will have phones when they have jobs, there's no reason they should have one any younger except maybe a cheapo prepaid for calls for a ride home when they're 13 or 14. Good parenting it's the key to everything I swear.

[Username00089]

On the subject of kids having them I get tons of creepy PM's and BBM people asking for stuff that they shouldn't I can't imagine these creeps going after 13 year old girls with self esteem issues.

I think the same thing everytime someone on here talks about perverted BBM'rs. Sometimes I don't think they have a limit. It's a sickening thought.

On the issue of a someone being too young for a phone:

I remember getting my first phone when I was 15 years old closing in on sixteen (geez, it's been 10 years!). But of course phone usage was different back then. My dad activated his old (back then new) motorola startac for me once he went to the "digital" technology type of phone. I remember having it off about 90% of the time. But I tell you, if the phone had all those kinds of features that they do today, being the brat that I was, I probably would have been asking for a phone at twelve.

I don't know how much this is of relevance to this thread, but my point simply is that had I stomped my feet and cried for a phone, it would have been up to my parents to slap me straight to he!! for me to STFU about wanting a phone.

[greeneyedmonster]

Lia you should read my other post about should the minor or adult be charged.

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[gtaryder08]

Wow no offense but alot of underage hating in this forum lol i have payed for my cell phone bill since i was 14 and i have owned a BB since the on and off never been irresponsible with it comes te no o green's other forum young people are not the same as ot used to be before alot of teens are more mature and know more about adult stuff these everyone has their opinion..... i think everyone should get 1 chance and if you screw it up .... your done!

[Bcloutier]

Wow, you guys really like hating on the youth. :x There are actually responsible ones among us. We're not all these badass kids. Give us a break. This is feeling like another topic where adults can just have fun looking down on the younger members of society.

I'm 16 years old if this helps, before I start the rest of this post.

For simplicities sake, when I say kids, I'm talking about 14/15+ years older.

Kids can be responsible. We're able to make good decisions. We are smart. We're not all some sex-driven group of people that want to send nude pictures to each other and text all day long. There's such a thing as self control; and we can posses it. Some of you may be surprised by that.

I like to be organized. I use my calendar on my MacBook and iPod Touch and they sync together. I have different calendars for Home (appointments, holidays, etc), School (projects due, exam days, etc), Work (when, where) and other ones. Staying organized is extremely important to me. So a BlackBerry improves on that, with its Applications that have organizational tools.

I keep my Contacts together, whether it's my teachers, friends or work contacts. A BlackBerry will improve on that - email and IM on the go to them.

Having information on the go is what I need. I don't want to have to find a Wi-Fi hotspot to get my MacBook or Touch to go on the web. A BlackBerry will give me access to that, which will help in school and at work.

And why in the world would you restrict a child from texting? It's not going to kill them to chat with their friends. And it's a lot cheaper than voice minutes for you. Texting is a lot quieter for you, too. A camera is okay, too. If you're so worried about them taking pictures of themselves; we should take away your camera, too. We don't know if you'll take pictures with it... Better be safe than sorry.

The gun vs BlackBerry analogy - that's way too far fetched. It's a total Apples vs Oranges thing. A BlackBerry will not kill someone.

Sorry if I sound annoyed - although I am. I don't see any problem with BlackBerries in kids' hands. In my school, 10% of the students (150/1500) have BlackBerries - Pearls, Curves, few Bolds and Storms. We are responsible with them.

~Bcloutier~

[exelant]

No subject seems to get people more worked up than this one. It has to be a case by case decision made by parents and their children. I like being in touch with my kids. My 12 YO has a dumb flip phone and my 15 YO has a glyde but no data. My kids are responsible and I trust them to follow the rules, and when my son is 16 he will get data added to his account. If one misbehaves, then there will be consequences for misbehaving such as losing phone privileges for a time.

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[sodakitty]

Really. It's completely unreasonable to assume all teenagers are walking around with the same maturity and responsibility. Let's face it: in life, you meet some adults that aren't as responsible as some older teenagers.
And some kids are school-smart but not street-smart (LIFE smart, that is), and then there's the opposite. Three different sixteen-year-old boys: one raising three younger siblings because their mother's an alcoholic; one who's been coddled and spoiled, and one who loves to party and 'get hammered,' all who get straight A's...one is entirely different from the next.

One 13-year-old could be responsible and smart enough to warrant using a smartphone, like the organized example above. And then there would be a 17-year-old girl who's too ditzy and lacking in self-control to keep herself from sending naughty texts with accompanying pictures to all the boys in school, and some teachers, too.
Same applies to adults. I'm 24, and have no problem admitting I've met smarter 18-year-olds, and dumber 40-year-olds.

So, within reason, I don't think age has much to do with a deciding factor on who DESERVES a smartphone.

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