Help! What's the Best Phone/Deal for a 10 year old?

Amanda_MP

I'm buying my daughter her first mobile for Christmas and want some advice on what might be the best phone and deal? - I'm budgeting around £10 per month but not sure I want to lock into a contract? I'd prefer a PAYG. Thanks!

dibuzz

I'd go for a cheap pay and go in case she loses it but I also think 10 is a bit young for a phone or am I out of touch?
My 16 year old has a giff gaff sim card and buys a goody bag for £10 every month which gives him 250 minutes, unlimited texts and unlimited internet.

bizzybee

dibuzz wrote: »

I'd go for a cheap pay and go in case she loses it but I also think 10 is a bit young for a phone or am I out of touch?
My 16 year old has a giff gaff sim card and buys a goody bag for £10 every month which gives him 250 minutes, unlimited texts and unlimited internet.

I've done the same thing with my 11 year old son. An old phone, £5.00 giff gaff unlimited texts each month and then there is £5 on the account in case he needs to make a phone call but it all seems to be texting with his friends. I don't think he has a need to be on the internet at his age but no doubt we will upgrade in the future.

macman

Contract phone for a 10 year old is insane.

albionrovers

My 11yo is on a £10/m contract and manages it just fine, it started when she was 10. It's all about discipline.

macman

Agreed, it is. Which is why it is not suitable for most 10 year olds (or more to the point, their parents).
PAYG is good because it teaches a child to budget and appreciate that mobiles don't come free.
I'm always amazed at the no. of posts on here from parents who have given their offspring contract mobiles and are still paying for them them when they are well into their twenties-and sorting out all the excess billing issues due to overuse, roaming charges on holiday, etc.

bevvy

My 10 year old daugher has a o2 payg mobile which I top up £10 every month, this gives her 300 texts and 500mb internet, the £10 pays for calls but £10 doesn't seem go far agains calls/minutes. I have always been wary about getting her a contract but I noticed that Tesco Mobile (who I believe use O2) now have capped contracts,
seen this deal
Free Samsung Chat Phone, 250mins, 5000 texts and 500mb internet for £7.50 month, it's cheaper than the sim only deals as it includes internet and also the free phone, the contract is capped, so if they use up all their allowance, no nasty bills but you can top up with a payg if needed.

The way I see it is I would be paying less than I am just now, for more minutes, texts etc and free phone thrown in (ok probally not worth too much, but fine for a 10 year old) and if the worst comes to the worst and the phone got broken/lost then just pop the sim card into another payg phone.
http://phone-shop.tesco.com/tesco-mobile/paymonthly/deals/4789459e-0038-4b2b-a750-21d57102678e?CurrntPage=1&PageSize=9&RowCount=292&SortBy=-1&ManufacturerId=-1&ModelId=-1&PriceId=-1&ContractDurationId=-1&TypeId=1&TariffType=Tesco.Blue.Model.TariffUnCapped,Tesco.Blue.Core

Lifes_Grand_Plan

Any parent buying their child a contract deserves the inevitable sky high bill that will eventually come when the child doesn't realise one month that texting x-factor isn't included in their free texts...

PAYG is definately the way forward if you really must, but for me, 10 years old is just far too young for a child to have a phone full stop....

All just my humble opinion of course.....

(And just to give context, i'm not some old out of touch technophobe... i'm 30 and love technology, just think this is asking for trouble).

Daz2009

Certainly a 10 yr old should not be using the internet unsupervised,not on a phone or a computer

bevvy

Daz2009 wrote: »

Certainly a 10 yr old should not be using the internet unsupervised,not on a phone or a computer

There is such things as parental controls/restrictions!!!
The op asked about phones suitable for his/her 10yr old not if he/she should be using the internet or not.

jb66

Madness, £10 a month, what does a ten year old spend it on