Gizmos and Tick Talks

Our parents in the 70's and 80's didn't seem to have an issue letting us just roam around incommunicado. They didn't really have any choice, unless they wanted to get on a bike and hang out with us and our friends. It also probably seemed very Jetsons to have cell phones and smartwatches or not even a thought at all since those things didn't exist. They just let us out, told us to come home when it was dark, and hoped for the best. Now, we have the technology to keep tabs on our kids so we do.

It makes life a lot easier for me, especially because E took up acting years ago. Sometimes I have to grab him early from school on short notice for auditions. I text him for that and just on a daily basis to tell him whether he needs to come right home from school, if he has time to play, or if I'm coming to get him. The school car line is hectic enough without my kid being confused as to whether I'm getting him in a drizzle or he should just suck it up and walk.

I wrote about the Gizmo Gadget (only through Verizon Wireless) when E got it at the end of first grade. For those of you unaware, it's a smartwatch for kids. It can make and receive calls, count steps, GPS, has a to-do list, and is totally parent controlled. Blog entry from when we got the Gizmo: Gizmos and Gadgets

I still think the Gizmo Gadget (not the Gizmo Pal) is the best phone/GPS watch for a kid from kindergarten (if need be) up to around the age of nine or ten years old. It's fine until like 4th/5th grade. You can have it on silent for whatever time/day periods you choose, like during school. However, they can still read texts or call you and you can call them. It just doesn't make any noise. The battery life is also pretty great. Without constant use, it definitely can last a days without charging. Not the seven days of standby time the specs say, but definitely a few days. The GPS is also pretty accurate so even with the ability to have constant GPS updates, the battery still goes strong. E would charge it every night before bed so it was always at a hundred percent in the morning before school, but if he didn't remember to charge it for a night, it still definitely had enough juice for the next day.

The big con, for an older kid, is that since only ten numbers can call in or out, at 4th/5th grade they want to start calling friends and making their own plans. I'm not making plans or "playdates" for my ten or eleven year old. I get annoyed when parents ask me for that. No, let your kid call my kid and ask him. Then he can ask me if he's allowed. Except, many households don't have a landline. We do, but it's getting less and less common, unfortunately, because listening to my kid talk to his friends on his Gizmo, they need the practice. So, it's not like you can just say- "call their house". They'd most likely be calling a parent's cell phone. That doesn't help your kid if they want to know if Johnny can play and the parents isn't home or with Johnny. Not to mention, not everyone wants to be answering calls on their cell from their own kids when they're out, nevermind someone else's kid.

The Gizmo Gadget is like that episode of Seinfeld with the speed dial - there are precious few spots and you have to be really selective on who you fit in there. There just aren't enough contacts allowed. It's also only operable on Verizon. They can call or receive calls not on Verizon but you need a Verizon account to hook it up. If you don't have that you have three options. Switch to Verizon, find someone who will put it on their account for you, or pay extra for it to be it's own Verizon line alone.

I had researched other phone watches for E because he is NOT ready for a "real" phone. That would just be setting him for failure. Not even what he'd DO with it, like looking up stuff on the internet that he isn't supposed to, but just that he'd lose it. I just don't think he's ready for that responsibility nor is it a necessity. The biggest issue I'd have is the lack of ability to get to him when I need him to see a message. If he had a phone, it would be in his backpack all day. If I need to text him what the deal is for after school, I need him to see that BEFORE the bell rings for the day. I can't have him checking AFTER the bell rings because there are times I need him to HURRY and get out there first so we can just get going.

I found the Tick Talk 3, which had just come out this past spring, I think. It costs around $179. If you get it directly through them, there's a $10 off coupon and it's free shipping. If you get it through Amazon, it's $189. It seems like the perfect bridge between a Gizmo and a smartphone. It doesn't work with Verizon though, and that's what I had. You can use this service called Red Pocket for $10/mo or you can put it on your T-Mobile or AT&T Account. Tick Talk says that would cost $25-$30/mo on T-Mobile with a "ONE" plan. I don't know anything about that plan.

I was looking to possibly leave Verizon anyway because my bills were astronomical. I'd crowd sourced on Facebook who everyone was switching to and they said T-Mobile. The Tick Talk 3 working with that seemed like the push I needed.

I got fed up with Verizon finally, after being a customer since Verizon Wireless came into existence. My phones were all paid off so I just walked into T-Mobile last week and opted to switch. They had a promotion going where I got a third line for free, so instead of the $25-$30 for that line, it was free. SCORE!

As an aside, I got B an iPhone 8 for free, trading in his 6S. I got an iPhone 11 for $14.59/mo trading in my 8, and added two cellular iPads. All of that was way less money a month than Verizon. My service in Bergen County and NYC has been totally fine. In some places, like the downtown of my current town, it's been better than with Verizon. If you use me as a referral, that would be great. I think we both get something. Willie is a manager there and he and Amber were great-
T-Mobile Paramus Park

I got the Tick Talk 3 directly from their site and it came in just a few days. I ordered it on a Friday morning and received it by Monday whenever my mail was delivered. It was easy to install the SIM card T-Mobile gave me. It needed to be charged for 2-3 hours so E wasn't thrilled but it is what it is.

The Pros:
-Fifty-three contacts. I put all his friends, and literally, their mothers in there.
-The display is large and set in, so you don't have to worry as much about banging the screen on something. It basically has a bumper to keep it safe.
-It can call 911 if you put that in the SOS contact section
-No internet or games
-Takes photos and video. Those people labeled mom or dad can text and Face Time
-Calculator
-Ability to put turn the sound off but have it vibrate instead. That was a big annoyance with the Gizmo, having no vibrating option. He often didn't hear it ringing in a loud place so vibrating would've been key.
-Texting is more than thirty characters allowed. I can text him a whole monologue if I want and don't have to break up what I'm saying because of a character limit.

The Cons:
There are really only a few cons I've come across. And only one is REALLY BIG DEAL.
-The battery life SUCKS. It really sucks. At the moment it's 8-10 hours. Well, turning it on even thirty minutes before school, and having him come home not long after school ends eats up about seven or eight of those hours.

When I freaked out about this to customer service, their reply was that they were moving to a server which should give it about another hour or two. But that still isn't acceptable to me. I'm not worried about abduction, but if I was, what kind of time frame is that to be able to ping your kid's location?? Further, for a working parent, I'm sure there are days parents are away from their kid for longer than the typical school day. The whole point of having the watch is to be able to get in touch with your kid or at least GPS them.

They also said that it's the GPS that uses the battery. The Gizmo had just as good or better GPS and it didn't eat the Gizmo battery so there has to be a better explanation or better technology there.

**As I wrote this, it was 2:03pm EST. He left for school at 8:12a. He turned it on probably around 8:00am. He hasn't texted, taken pics/videos, and hasn't made any calls. I had just looked on the app, and his battery was at 31%. By 6:00pm, it was at 10%. That's pitiful and just ridiculous. It does charge pretty quickly though. I plugged it into the charger at around 6:30p and at 7pm was back up to 80%**

**UPDATE 10/5** I don't know if they changed over servers or whatever they said would extend the battery life. But I updated the OS on the watch too and today was definitely a longer battery life. E turned it on about 8:30a and by 5:00pm today it was at 65% battery. That's a HUGE difference from the first few days of being on 10% by around 6pm. I'm still recharging it before leaving the house in about twenty minutes but I'll also say I plugged it in twenty minutes ago and it's at 91% already. 

We're going to have to modify our schedule of charging until the battery life is extended. He's going to have to remember to charge it again as soon as he walks in the door and take it from the charger if he wants to leave the house again. That totally defeats the purpose of him having his freedom after school but we'll do what we have to do. I told their customer service that I want another charger if the battery life is going to be this horrendous. I will keep it in the car so when we go to NYC for his class, I can charge it on the way there or home. I don't know what their response to that is yet.

The battery is my only major issue. I would totally be fine giving up the camera and/or video if that was what was giving it a shorter battery life. Tweens don't need to be able to take selfies or videos. That's solely a WANT. I NEED to be able to track my kid or get in touch with him.

E didn't like that when it was on Tick Talk's version of quiet time, the whole watch was on lock down. He couldn't even read texts or anything until the minute after the quiet time was released. I didn't know that. Now that I know he can just put it on vibrate, we'll do that instead. I'm not sure what the purpose of the parent controlled quiet time would be then. I liked it on the Gizmo because if he forgot to silence it in school, I could do it from the app myself.

He's also missing the step counter. Definitely not a huge issue. Just something to think about if you're looking to have a dual fitness tracker/phone situation.

Aesthetically, it looks more like a toy than the Gizmo. Maybe that design was necessary because of the added camera/video capability. I'm not sure. I liked the look of the Gizmo better because it was flatter, more like an Apple Watch. An older kid might find the look of the Tick Talk more babyish. E doesn't care though. Whatever watch gives him freedom, he'll wear without issue.

The manual that comes with the watch isn't super detailed or clear, so you're left to figure stuff out on your own. I am decently techie with stuff like this, so I'm fine, but it is a little frustrating. I will say, that I think it is a small company though. I originally contacted through their chat on their website. "Tiffiny" was my contact on the chat. When I wasn't satisfied with my answer there, I wrote a more detailed email. Tiffiny was also who responded there. *awkward* But, it may be a plus because you're getting more personal attention?

More of the settings are set via the watch vs the app. Meaning, the child determines the volume, whether it vibrates or not, ringtone, etc. I guess we're supposed to give them more control at SOME point in their existence. 

The only other complaint I have is just from a progressive thinking standpoint. There is no option for mom and mom. Or dad and dad. It's just mom and dad. And that the activities you can pick from for reminders are preloaded. There's one for church. But just church. Not temple, not mosque, not religious studies. Why just "church"? That annoys me. Not from a religious standpoint but from the lack of thoughtfulness. Those are easy fixes. Unless this is some kind of Christian based company and I'm unaware.

**Update: they made it possible to add your own activities. So if I want to put Hebrew school tutor, I CAN. 

All in all, if it wasn't for the battery, this would be perfect for us. I like that he still can't text with his friends. If he wants to call, there are enough contact spots for everyone, but they have to learn how to speak to each other. I love the vibrate option so he can't miss a call or text from B and I.  Since E never knows what day it is, I'm happy that that there's a calendar and reminders for activities. *If they'll just send me an extra charger and work on the standby battery life, it will be a winner.

Update: They sent me an extra charging wire for free.

Why do you need either watch? You may not think it's necessary, but having a GPS phone watch does a few things for you and your child. It allows you to give them freedom and teach responsibility on a smaller scale as they're ready. Maybe they are ready to walk to or from school but YOU aren't. Here is your peace of mind and gives you a chance to stop helicoptering. I'm able to tell E that he had to be home at a certain time and it's on him to look at his watch, know how much time to allow himself for travel, and to make sure he's home when he's supposed to be. It's also something he has to take care of and remember to charge. No charge, no freedom. That happened ONCE. It wasn't charged ONCE. He learned his lesson.

Lastly- they're great for those time you don't mean to lose your kid, but you do. Not that it ever happened to me.... *Block party* *Halloween* *Town carnival* E went to an event at Giants stadium with his friend, friend's parents, and another friend. He said at one point, one kid got lost and it was nerve wracking. Both the kid of the parents in charge and the other kid have the watch but weren't wearing it. E did have his on, loaded with both kids numbers, but it didn't help because they didn't have theirs on. It could've saved time and fear of losing other people's kids if they all had their watches on. It just helps give them a little rope for critical thinking skills but still gives parents peace of mind. Without the pitfalls of having to be responsible for a $600-$1000 piece of equipment (iPhone) and unrestricted access to the internet or gaming.

Gizmo Gadget