Phone for my 9 year old: recomendations?

[buttercup]

He is flying as unaccompanied minor this summer and I just want him to have a phone for this trip. He would be texting and calling me and his dad a couple of times per day, if I know him.
I'd prefer a prepaid one. Can you recommend?

[new_mommy25]

I bought my 9 year old a Tracfone and have been happy with it. He's had it a year. I went with TF because the minutes are good for 90 days, vs most other ppd phones where the minutes are only good for 30 days.

[karstmama]

mama has a tracfone, so that's what i was gonna recommend, too. double check, but i think you can let it lie without minutes in a drawer or something, and only buy minutes for it when you want to. i'd like that for a child's emergency phone, so i wouldn't be tempted to let him/her carry it all the time since it had to be paid for all the time.

[tny915]

I just got my 9yo this LG221C Tracfone for emergencies last week.
http://www.amazon.com/LG-221C-Prepaid-Minutes-Tracfone/dp/B0081AIGIO/ref=pd_sim_sbs_cps_3

This one, LG235C, is similar but includes a camera.
http://www.amazon.com/LG-235C-Prepaid-Minutes-Tracfone/dp/B008BL8BLU/ref=pd_cp_cps_0

I wanted a phone that used Verizon's CDMA network since that's better in my area. The phone models that end with C use CDMA. Most Tracfones use AT&T's GSM networks and are the models that end with G.

I also used this site to get bonus minute codes. Check the comments for the reliable codes.
http://tracfonereviewer.blogspot.com/p/tracfone-promo-codes.html?m=1

[JElaineB]

DH just got a Tracfone LG 840G. It's a GSM model which uses the AT&T network. He's happy with it so far and it looks like any other smartphone. It only uses Java apps, however. It does have internet access and a camera. For texting you get a full electronic keyboard but from some reason when you enter conctacts it is just at T9 keyboard. I also got one for myself, but I still need to activate it. I bought mine from QVC, they have a very good deal on it. For $99.96 you get the phone, regular charger, car charger, colored battery cover, triple minutes for life, 1 year service and 1500 minutes (have to call a number to get the minutes added after you activate through Tracfone). I actually got mine for $89 when it was the deal of the day a couple of weeks ago, but for $100 it's still a great deal, as for $100 you usually just get the one year of service and 400 minutes (plus any bonus minutes).

Link to QVC - black http://www.qvc.com/LG840G-Tracfone-No-Contract-Cell-Phone-w-1500-Minutes-Black.product.E224692.html?sc=E224692-Zone&cm_scid=zone&cm_sp=MERCHZONE-_-Featured:+Best+Sellers-_-2

Link to QVC - white http://www.qvc.com/LG840G-Tracfone-No-Contract-Cell-Phone-w-1500-Minutes-White.product.E224621.html?sc=E224621-Zone&cm_scid=zone&cm_sp=MERCHZONE-_-Featured:+Best+Sellers-_-1

ETA: My 10 year old wants one of these phones, so we are thinking of getting one for him too.

[new_mommy25]

The tracfone I bought DS is from Walmart and comes with double minutes for life. They had several different models. I just bought him the basic one since its for emergency use only (he catches a school bus) and it cost $30. Every 3
months I add more minutes for 19.99. It's cheaper than adding him to our cell phone plan.

[JElaineB]

DH just got a Tracfone LG 840G. It's a GSM model which uses the AT&T network. He's happy with it so far and it looks like any other smartphone. It only uses Java apps, however. It does have internet access and a camera. For texting you get a full electronic keyboard but from some reason when you enter conctacts it is just at T9 keyboard. I also got one for myself, but I still need to activate it. I bought mine from QVC, they have a very good deal on it. For $99.96 you get the phone, regular charger, car charger, colored battery cover, triple minutes for life, 1 year service and 1500 minutes (have to call a number to get the minutes added after you activate through Tracfone). I actually got mine for $89 when it was the deal of the day a couple of weeks ago, but for $100 it's still a great deal, as for $100 you usually just get the one year of service and 400 minutes (plus any bonus minutes).

Link to QVC - black http://www.qvc.com/LG840G-Tracfone-No-Contract-Cell-Phone-w-1500-Minutes-Black.product.E224692.html?sc=E224692-Zone&cm_scid=zone&cm_sp=MERCHZONE-_-Featured:+Best+Sellers-_-2

Link to QVC - white http://www.qvc.com/LG840G-Tracfone-No-Contract-Cell-Phone-w-1500-Minutes-White.product.E224621.html?sc=E224621-Zone&cm_scid=zone&cm_sp=MERCHZONE-_-Featured:+Best+Sellers-_-1

ETA: My 10 year old wants one of these phones, so we are thinking of getting one for him too.

I just activated my LG 840G Tracfone and the deal is even better than I thought. You get 20 minutes and 60 days for activating a new phone. Then I called a number to get the 365 days and 1500 minutes. So for less than $100 I got 14 months of service and 1520 minutes (this got added on to what I transferred from my old phone). QVC has other Tracphones with similar benefits, definitely recommend this deal.