AT&T says its new amiGO Jr. smartphone — which it claims is the first smartphone designed for kids — and second-generation amiGO Jr. Watch 2 aim to keep children safe and connected to their parents and guardians. The company says parents constitute 40% of its customer base.
The amiGO Jr. was created in collaboration with Samsung. It enables parents to manage screen time, apps and settings from their own iOS or Android phone. It features location sharing, “safe zones,” and scheduling to control use during school hours.
AT&T says that the second-generation amiGO Jr. Watch 2 is more durable than the previous iteration and comes with native messaging, games, and rewards.
Both devices cost $2.99 per month with no trade-in required.
“Putting customers at the center of our business means anticipating what comes next — not just responding to what already exists. As smartphones become a daily necessity, parents have made it clear they need better tools to help their children navigate the digital world safely,” AT&T Senior Vice President of Revenue Management & Commercialization Erin Scarborough said in a press release.
“We listened. We worked with kids and parents to design the AT&T amiGO Jr. Phone to give parents peace of mind and kid friendly options for today’s digital world.”
The relationship between children and phones is an important industry topic. The Helium Mobile Kids Plan, which the service provider introduced last June, provides parents or guardians the ability to approve and manage everything concerning kids’ phones, including data limits and Cloud Store rewards.
But there are also obstacles to providing telecommunications services to children. In September, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr issued a declarative ruling reversing decisions enabling the use of E-Rate funds to provide Wi-Fi on school buses. He also circulated an order for FCC reconsideration of rules that would end funding for Wi-Fi hotspots that would be used outside of schools and libraries.
At least one organization responded. In October, Mission Telecom, a nonprofit telecommunications provider, started a program enabling schools and libraries receive services at the former E-Rate level.
