iPhone for 7 yr old?

[whmurray]

When the Frog Prince was a little more than a toddler and got angry with me, he would say, "I hate you!"

Me: I can live with that.

FP: No you can't.

Me: Yes I can. I got along without you before I met you: I can get along without you now.

FP: Unh uh.

Me: Okay, I give up. You win.

FP: No, I give up, you win.

Much like Blackberries I feel iPhones should only be used by people 17 & up.. when they can appreciate what type of phone they have and really know how to take care of it.

Me: So, jhamilton3, I give up, you win.

How about: Gecko Netbook runs on AA batteries | Crave - CNET ?

Incidentally, before the Frog Prince gave up, he had already forgotten what he was angry about.

 

[jewelz]

As a mother to a 7 year old, I would never ever give my daughter an iPhone. I am an IT and I have made sure my daughter is very tech savy, but she has NO need for a cell phone let alone an iPhone. My baby doesn't even pick her barbies up half the time and I am always washing little things she leaves in her pocket. My point is The maturity level of any 7 year old I know is not even close to being developed enough for the reposibility that having an iphone entails.

 

[Nellybelly333]

In the wisdom of yoda, "an iphone does not a spoiled child make".

I think Yoda might also say: "7 year old does break all that it touch hmmm?"

If I met a 7 year old, grateful, amazingly responsible kid, I would possibly agree with them having an iphone. But in that same day I would expect to meet Santa and the tooth fairy.

 

[whmurray]

As a mother to a 7 year old, I would never ever give my daughter an iPhone. I am an IT and I have made sure my daughter is very tech savy, but she has NO need for a cell phone let alone an iPhone. My baby doesn't even pick her barbies up half the time and I am always washing little things she leaves in her pocket. My point is The maturity level of any 7 year old I know is not even close to being enough for the reposibility that having an iphone entails.

My father said the same thing about a black and white television. He did not have a color television until I bought him one. Within six months, he had three. He did not "need" the first one.

What part of "toy" do you not understand? No child "needs" any toy. This is about us, not the child. Toys are luxuries, not necessities. We are teaching here, not expecting, much less demanding. This is not about "maturity" so much as maturing.

Aside from price, the only difference between an iPhone and a Barbie, is that the iPhone teaches.

As for washing, I still wash things that I leave in my pockets.

I can certainly understand the decision of an adult not to buy an iPhone for a child. More likely, I can understand that it would not even occur to most people to even consider. What I have trouble with, is the resistance to the idea of other people doing it. What I cannot understand is people making it about the child rather than the adult. We buy them Playstations, Wiis, DSLites, and DVD players, not to even mention televisions. One might much prefer for them to have an iPhone than a TV. We do not buy them televisions because they "need" them, do we?

We are talking trivia here, not national security.

One iPod Touch or iPhone per child (depending upon how much time the child spends on the phone). (These days, children learn their numbers so that they can call their grandmothers. They do not "need" to call their grandmothers but the child and the grandmothers like it.)

Five years ago, people made exactly the same argument about cell phones for teenagers. While a few people still rant about it, it is a settled argument. Note that we did not yield to pressure from the children; we decided for ourselves that we wanted them to have them for our own convenience. We wanted teenagers to learn to drive for our own convenience. We took the risk of their "responsibility."

Five years from now, this thread is going to look silly. Five years from now, cell phones much more powerful than an iPhone will come in a Cracker Jack box. They will be consumables. You do not believe me? Remember three years ago when 128K thumb drives cost tens of dollars?

 

[whmurray]

I think Yoda might also say: "7 year old does break all that it touch hmmm?"

Yes, he would. Then he would say, "No big deal."

 

[whmurray]

When Nicole was three, she was into balloons. Ask her what she wanted, she would say "a balloon." We bought them by the hundreds. When one popped, she would say, "That is what balloons do." When she spilled something, as she was disposed to do, her brother would say, "Stuff happens."

When my 19 year old brother drove my brand new Oldsmobile Cutlass (Yes, I am that old), he had an accident. I sent the insurance man to the scene. My position was that if I could not lend it and be comfortable with the consequences, I really could not afford to own it.

Steve took it a little more seriously than that. Years later, when I visited in his city for a week, he loaned me his Mercedes 500 for the week. When I thanked him for his generosity, he reminded me of the Cutlass.

When I visit with my brother's grandchildren, they ask to play with my iPhone. Others worry that "They might break it." My reaction is that it is backed up and that it will give me an excuse to buy a new one.

My first (analog) cell phone cost $1500 in 1986, down from $3000 in 1985. I paid $1- per minute for airtime plus $1 a minute for roaming plus long distance tolls. It was capital. A phone that I get for tens of dollars with a $60 a month all-in contract is a consumable. I appreciate that some people stretch to buy an iPhone like I stretched for that first analog. I would like to assure you that it will not always be a big deal.

Written down on the list of Heresies and Other Words I Try to live by, it says, "If you would be happy, count your blessings, and give of your bounty."

 

[Nellybelly333]

If you have the money to spend 3000 dollars on a cell phone and pay a dollar a minute then yes, you would most likely say "stuff happens".

Living on a teachers salary, 300 dollars and 90 dollars a month is a lot of money.

And I must disagree with the comment on the iPhone "teaching" while a barbie does not. God forbid a kid socializes with another child and uses their imagination. I have let a few young kids play with my phone, and the first thing that ask is "where are the games?". Then they have their face buried in it for an hour... What was taught there?

I would take the 300 dollars and buy my kid a new bike. Get them outside and active. When I was 7 I would have been pleased with the box it came in.

I agree, this thread in 5 years will be ridiculous... But is that a good thing? It used to be baseball and riding bikes, now its iPhones and video games. And we wonder why half of this country is obese!

 

[whmurray]

Stop Blaming the Kids

If you have the money to spend 3000 dollars on a cell phone and pay a dollar a minute then yes, you would most likely say "stuff happens".

Living on a teachers salary, 300 dollars and 90 dollars a month is a lot of money.

And I must disagree with the comment on the iPhone "teaching" while a barbie does not. God forbid a kid socializes with another child and uses their imagination. I have let a few young kids play with my phone, and the first thing that ask is "where are the games?". Then they have their face buried in it for an hour... What was taught there?

I would take the 300 dollars and buy my kid a new bike. Get them outside and active. When I was 7 I would have been pleased with the box it came in.

I agree, this thread in 5 years will be ridiculous... But is that a good thing? It used to be baseball and riding bikes, now its iPhones and video games. And we wonder why half of this country is obese!

Make your choices; perfectly legitimate. However, what is happening here is that people are making THEIR choices and then putting the blame on the kids. The kids will break it. They are not responsible. They will lose it. They will run it through the washer. It will spoil them. They do not need it. Read the thread.

What ever happened to "I do not want to?" "I would rather spend my money on something else. " "My desires are more important." "I cannot afford it." "I am afraid that it will it will get broken." Even, "I am afraid that it will spoil her." Those are not the arguments being made here.

It is about us and our choices. It is not about necessity or privation. It is not about the technology.

Grow up. Stop blaming the kids. Kids are kids; such as they are, they do the best they can.

One iPhone or Touch per child.

I remember those trains.