Need "dumb" phone + cheapest plan for my 9yo

[wencit]

I would like to get a "dumb" phone for my 9yo DS2 that basically only calls or texts. I want him to be able to call me when he is finished with a tutoring class so I can pick him up. I went to Walmart and looked at flip phones there, but it seems like you also need an activation card with a 90-day plan. Is there anything that would let me pay-as-I-go? I see T-Mobile has a plan for $3/month for 30 minutes a month, which sounds perfect to me. Can I use that plan with a cheap flip phone I buy at any store?

Anyone care to share what they do with their young kids? I do NOT want to give him a smart phone.

Thanks!

[Mommy_Mea]

I was just talking with a friend about this today, so following this thread [emoji16]

[RiverRat]

My parents use tracfone for pay as your go. They have just basic dumb phones. They bought with a lifetime of double minutes and never run out. They have a store front online. And slickdeals often posts tracfone deals.


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[PunkyBoo]

Have you looked at the gizmo watch? I'm considering that for my 9 year old.

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[wendibird22]

Gizmo is popular around here for that age group. My 11yr old has an iPod, WiFi only. She can text us from school and friends’ houses. We haven’t run into a situation yet where she couldn’t reach us without data or the ability to call.


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[squimp]

Tracfone was the best deal when we were doing this a few years ago, you can get a phone for like $30 or BYOP and pay a very small amount of money (<$10 per month) and no plan you just pay for a certain number of minutes or texts. I am not up to date on it, but would look into it.

[ahisma]

We bought a Gizmo for this exact reason. It was ultimately cheaper (and easier) that our previous Tracfone solution.

[KpbS]

We use a Tracfone dumb phone (very inexpensive to purchase) for this purpose and buy minutes/service as needed. $29 for 90 days service and 120 minutes. Minutes carry over from prior service period if not used. It's been very easy and we've had it for several years.

eta 240 min.

[elephantmeg]

The kids have a trackphone that they share. It's awesome

[wencit]

Thanks for all the suggestions! I thought about the Gizmo, but I don't need any of the extra features. I want a phone that only makes calls, circa 1998, LOL!


We use a Tracfone dumb phone (very inexpensive to purchase) for this purpose and buy minutes/service as needed. $29 for 90 days service and 120 minutes. Minutes carry over from prior service period if not used. It's been very easy and we've had it for several years.

eta 240 min. Hmmm, so the minutes carry over? It seems from the marketing that the $29 is only valid for 90 days of service, and then the minutes "expire." Is that not the case? If I can buy a cheap Tracfone and one $29 card, then just keep carrying the minutes over, that would work for my purposes. I don't think he'd use more than 15 minutes a month!

[ahisma]

Thanks for all the suggestions! I thought about the Gizmo, but I don't need any of the extra features. I want a phone that only makes calls, circa 1998, LOL!

Hmmm, so the minutes carry over? It seems from the marketing that the $29 is only valid for 90 days of service, and then the minutes "expire." Is that not the case? If I can buy a cheap Tracfone and one $29 card, then just keep carrying the minutes over, that would work for my purposes. I don't think he'd use more than 15 minutes a month!

There aren't really extra features on the Gizmo. You can see where your DC is in the app, but certainly don't have to. Our experience with the trakfone was tough, although we stuck in there for a few years. It started off with getting a 666 exchange, which wasn't really cool for a kid to have in our very religious community. I did get it changed, but it took a few phone calls - and hours and hours of hold time. We had to add new minutes every 90 days trigger the roll-over for the new minutes, although he never came close to using them all. If he left it somewhere, there was now way for me to find it.

Ultimately - paying $5/month for a Gizmo was cheaper and easier for all of us. We're a year in and I wish we would have switched much sooner.

[wencit]

We had to add new minutes every 90 days trigger the roll-over for the new minutes, although he never came close to using them all. Does this mean I have to purchase and add new minutes every 90 days in order for the roll-over to happen?

[vonfirmath]

Does this mean I have to purchase and add new minutes every 90 days in order for the roll-over to happen?

Yes. Usually you have to add minutes every <Some period of time> -- 90 days is very standard

[ahisma]

Does this mean I have to purchase and add new minutes every 90 days in order for the roll-over to happen?

Yes. You do.

[wencit]

Hmm, that's probably not going to work for us then. He's not going to spend that much in calls every month.

[KpbS]

Hmm, that's probably not going to work for us then. He's not going to spend that much in calls every month.

It can be as little as $19 per 90 days for service and minutes. That's super cheap. I'd just think of it as peace of mind and the cost of a fast food meal per month.

[mmsmom]

Can’t the tutor just text you when he is finished? Or if it is at a tutoring center could he use their phone to call you?

My DS is 12 and does not have a phone... DH thinks he needs one and I do not so we have been going through scenarios where I come up with alternatives to needing a phone 😀

[KrisM]

We have a Tracfone that came with double minutes. I get a 30 day card for $9.99 and it gives 60 min, so we get 120 min. Checking out online lets you add features, and I add a 365 card for another $49.99. So I get a year for $50 plus taxes. It ends up about $65/year and the minutes roll. You can add extra minutes if you need to.

I do the year because I don't want to have to remember to add more every 90 days, and it works out cheaper by a bit.

[MSWR0319]

We have a Tracfone that came with double minutes. I get a 30 day card for $9.99 and it gives 60 min, so we get 120 min. Checking out online lets you add features, and I add a 365 card for another $49.99. So I get a year for $50 plus taxes. It ends up about $65/year and the minutes roll. You can add extra minutes if you need to.

I do the year because I don't want to have to remember to add more every 90 days, and it works out cheaper by a bit.

How do you get the double minutes? DS is 10 and needs a phone so he can contact me if practices get over early or if he needs me. He has food allergies and I am starting to leave him at practices and so I need him to be able to contact me immediately if needed.

[KrisM]

How do you get the double minutes? DS is 10 and needs a phone so he can contact me if practices get over early or if he needs me. He has food allergies and I am starting to leave him at practices and so I need him to be able to contact me immediately if needed.

It's part of how the phone is sold. I'm not seeing that now, so maybe they don't sell them like that any more.

This is what I bought, 5 years ago (it was $15 then): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0081AIGIO/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

And DS1's smartphone has triple minutes https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00PWEN2ZE/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[wencit]

I thought I would update this thread in case anyone else is looking for a non-smartphone, super cheap monthly option in the future.

I ended up buying this phone for my 9yo: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075FL4H89/ref=sr_1_1_twi_col_3?s=wireless&ie=UTF8&qid=1541558614&sr=1-1&keywords=nokia%2B3310&th=1

There are other, cheaper options on the market, but I was a little worried about them not working with T-Mobile. Anyways, we went to T-Mobile, paid $10 for a SIM card, and now the phone is on a $3/month for 30 minutes and texts, pay-as-you-go basis. It's working out perfectly for our needs, as DS2 only calls me a couple times a week, for just a minute at a time. I'm very happy with our solution.

[lil_acorn]

I thought I would update this thread in case anyone else is looking for a non-smartphone, super cheap monthly option in the future.

I ended up buying this phone for my 9yo: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075FL4H89/ref=sr_1_1_twi_col_3?s=wireless&ie=UTF8&qid=1541558614&sr=1-1&keywords=nokia%2B3310&th=1

There are other, cheaper options on the market, but I was a little worried about them not working with T-Mobile. Anyways, we went to T-Mobile, paid $10 for a SIM card, and now the phone is on a $3/month for 30 minutes and texts, pay-as-you-go basis. It's working out perfectly for our needs, as DS2 only calls me a couple times a week, for just a minute at a time. I'm very happy with our solution.

thi sis great but I don't even want to spend $50 on a phone lol. Is there a cheaper phone that this would work with?

[wencit]

The guy at the T-Mobile store said that "any unlocked GSM" phone would work. If you do a search on Amazon, there are cheaper phones, but some of them say they won't work on the T-Mobile network, so just be careful and make sure you can return it if it doesn't work out. Here's one that seems to check all the boxes and is only $30. Probably not the highest quality, though.

https://www.amazon.com/Kyocera-Unlocked-Camera-Bluetooth-Charger/dp/B07H4SBSLQ/ref=sr_1_2?s=mobile&ie=UTF8&qid=1542381929&sr=1-2&keywords=kyocera+tmobile+unlocked

[MSWR0319]

The guy at the T-Mobile store said that "any unlocked GSM" phone would work. If you do a search on Amazon, there are cheaper phones, but some of them say they won't work on the T-Mobile network, so just be careful and make sure you can return it if it doesn't work out. Here's one that seems to check all the boxes and is only $30. Probably not the highest quality, though.

https://www.amazon.com/Kyocera-Unlocked-Camera-Bluetooth-Charger/dp/B07H4SBSLQ/ref=sr_1_2?s=mobile&ie=UTF8&qid=1542381929&sr=1-2&keywords=kyocera+tmobile+unlocked

Can you get the cheap plan if you aren't a T-mobile customer? We have AT&T but they want $30 to add DS to my plan. We have an unlocked iphone sitting around that he could use, but I can't find the plan you got on their website.

[wencit]

Can you get the cheap plan if you aren't a T-mobile customer? We have AT&T but they want $30 to add DS to my plan. We have an unlocked iphone sitting around that he could use, but I can't find the plan you got on their website. Yes. DH and I both have Verizon. Here is the T-Mobile plan:

https://prepaid.t-mobile.com/prepaid/marketing/pay-as-you-go

It was super simple. They didn't even have us fill out any paperwork. We just paid for the SIM card and $3 for the first month.