Should parents buy their children a kids smart watch or kids phone?

Every parent reaches the critical stage of deciding whether it’s time to purchase their child a phone. But smart watches for kids are an increasingly popular way to introduce your child to the world of tech, while still protecting them from online dangers more prevalent in mobile phones.

Dive into the wearable-for-kids trend and decide whether buying a kids' smart watch for your children is a worthwhile investment over a kids' phone.

It’s hard not to love smart watches.

There’s just something so cool about having the very latest in tech sitting there on your wrist, ready to buzz to life.

One minute it’s reminding you of a meeting that you totally forgot about. The next it’s telling you how much more exercise you need to do today (so you decide you better hit the gym at lunch). The next you’re using it to reply to an SMS. They can even tell you the time.

But smart watches aren’t just for grown-ups. In fact, there’s a growing market in smart watches for kids, with some surveys claiming up to 30% of purchases are for children.

Before you think the worst though, this isn’t just another case of overloading our kids with too much tech, too early in their life. In fact, it’s actually quite the opposite.

Read on to find out how.

If you’re child isn’t quite ready for their own phone, but you still want to keep in touch with them, a smart watch could be the right answer. Here’s why:

When you give your child a smartphone or tablet to play with, you’re giving them access to a seemingly endless stream of games, apps and other ways to ramp up their screen time.

But if you give them a kids' smartwatch, things become different. There aren’t many games they can play on smart watches – that screen is just too small for a round of Fortnite or playing a game on Roblox.

Suddenly, the only thing that they can use their tech for is keeping in touch with you. Kids' smart watches like the new Spacetalk Adventurer 2 have no social media or open internet web browsers so you can rest easy knowing your kids won’t be distracted.

Perhaps the best thing about a kids' smart watch is that you can track your child with GPS, ensuring they’re where they’re meant to be, when they’re meant to be. Even better, some of them even have geofencing, which will alert you when your little adventurer tries to stray out of a designated area. For example, the Spacetalk Adventurer 2 pairs with the Spacetalk app and subscription, where you can see your kid’s location at any time (SpaceTalk app subscription required).

Let’s face it, a phone for your kid can be expensive, not only to purchase but to repair. So, it’s understandable if you have reservations about handing over a shiny new phone to your butter-fingered kiddo.

Smart watches, on the other hand, are a much cheaper affair. Some of them come in at a couple of hundred dollars, and even the top-of-the-line ones will cost you less than some smartphones. The Spacetalk Adventurer 2 is available for $349 or $9.69 over 36 months.

Plus, because it’s strapped to your child’s wrist, there’s much less chance of it being left in a school bag, going missing or being dropped. Which also means that you can always get in touch with them when you need to. Win-win.

Setting up a new kids' phone can be inconvenient. You’ll need to ensure the phone settings are optimal for your child, which isn’t always easy for those less tech-savvy. This means finding the right third party apps to allow safety features such as GPS-tracking and parental app blocking (if you intend to restrict things like social media). With a kids' watch like the Spacetalk Adventurer 2, all these features come in-built and with easy set up in mind – discover more about its features here. Lastly, purchasing mobile apps individually may come at a greater cost than the Spacetalk app subscription (which is usually $5.99/month but included when you purchase the watch at Optus with the Choice Plus Family Watch Plan).

Perhaps most importantly for kids, smart watches are just plain fun. There are fitness features that will get them moving and playing outdoors. Others will get them bopping along to their favourite songs or counting how many steps they’ve taken. And who doesn’t love the thought of talking into their watch like on Get Smart. Even features that we take for granted – like the watch face – will help them learn to tell the time.

Some new watches even come with exclusive apps that reward good behaviour through goal setting determined by parents.

It’s natural to worry about what your kids are doing and where they’re doing it. With a smart watch, you can calm your fears. You don’t even need to call your child to check up. If their watch has GPS tracking, it’s as simple as looking up their location to make sure they’re where they’re meant to be (app subscription may be required).

It’s a privilege that other generations of parents didn’t have, so why not make the most of it. Your blood pressure and stress levels will thank you.

This isn’t so much a negative as it is a reminder. There are a whole range of smart watches out there – some of them built especially for kids, others made for all ages. While some of them are fantastic… others might not be as great. Before you spend your hard-earned money, do plenty of Googling to ensure that the smart watch you’re eyeing off has the features you and your kid want. Should you aim for top of the line, like an Apple Watch Series 10, Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 or shoot for something simpler that is made for kids?

The Spacetalk Adventurer 2 is available for $9.69 over 36 months with the 10GB Optus Choice Plus Family Watch Plan at $20/month. This Plan includes subscription access to the Spacetalk app (usually $5.99/month) via Optus SubHub. The SpaceTalk app allows a maximum of 20 connected devices.For a limited time, you can purchase the Spacetalk Adventurer 2 for $7.58 per month over 36 months with Optus. Offer lasts until 22/01/25. T&Cs apply. ²

Explore our range of smart watches and find the one that’s right for you, then keep your family together with the Optus Family Mobile Plan.

Worried about your kid’s screen time? Then explore Optus Pause – the free feature for eligible Optus customers available in My Optus app.

Disclaimers

1.      The wellness features are currently available on Spacetalk devices purchased through the Spacetalk online store and approved retail partners only. Spacetalk is a consumer grade general wellness device, not a certified medical device. Spacetalk wellness features are not intended for medical diagnostics. The information provided in this website or the Spacetalk mobile application is not a substitute for obtaining proper professional care or services. You should seek independent advice from a medical professional as required.

2.    Available to consumer customers who sign up or recontract and stay connected to an eligible Watch plan and purchase a Spacetalk Adventurer 2 on a 24 or 36 month device payment plan. Excludes 12-month device payments and outright purchases. Discount applied over length of payment plan and applied from the first invoice for the device payment. The discount will be forfeited if the customer cancels, recontracts or changes to an ineligible plan and the customer will have to pay out the full cost of the device on a pro-rata basis, excluding the device discount Optus was going to cover. N/A with other discount offers unless specified. Limit 5 device discounts per account. Dusk variant with Slate band only. Offer available until 22/01/25.