If you’re considering buying a phone for your child, the chances are you’ve had to endure at least a few months of pestering. Kids love phones, and they can be a great way for them to socialise and develop digital skills, but it’s important to make sure they get the right phone at the right time.
Many children will ask for a phone while they’re still at primary school, which may well be too early. Even if it isn’t, younger children might not be ready for a smartphone, particularly given the extra risks that internet connectivity can bring.
When should I buy my kids a phone?
Kids and their circumstances are different, and you must decide the right time to buy your kids a phone – or let them buy one for themselves. It’s best to be driven by need. For example, you might want your child to have a phone if they’re travelling to school independently, or as a way to keep in touch if the family has separated.
But while it might be tempting to just hand down your old mobile, it’s wise to think twice. Young children in particular can be at risk when using internet-connected apps and devices, and giving them a smartphone may make their internet use harder to police – particularly if they have a SIM card with mobile data. If you are handing over an old phone, be sure to factory reset it to remove your own data, and set up parental controls to limit what your children can see and do.
Phones are unlikely to survive too long in the rough and tumble of daily trips to school, so it’s important to limit the value of your child’s phone: a cheap or refurbished mobile will cut your losses if the phone gets lost, smashed or stolen. In any case, it’s a good idea to protect smartphones with a strong case and a screen protector.
So what are the best phones for kids, and which is the best phone for your children? Here’s our top five.
Nokia 105
Price £25 (from Nokia) – browse Nokia deals on Mozillion
Mozillion rating
Why buy?Cheap, robust and basic
Why not?Too basic for older kids
If you’ve got young kids who need a mobile, you can’t get much better than Nokia’s 105. A simple feature phone, the 105 is all about talking. Powered by a removable 800mAh battery, the 105 offers about 14 hours of talk time, and it can stay on standby for at least a couple of weeks – handy if your child often forgets to plug it in.
This phone has no touchscreen and it doesn’t support mobile or WiFi data, so you can’t install any apps. That’s great if you want to keep young children away from the internet and social media, but it does also mean you can’t track your kids – or find the phone when it goes missing.
The Nokia 105 is basic, but it’s almost as cheap as mobile phones get: if your kids lose or break it, it’s not the end of the world. While it won’t satisfy older kids, it’s a great first phone for younger ones who just need a way to contact you or stay in touch with their friends.
Nokia 6310
Price £60 (from Nokia) – buy cheap Nokia phones on Mozillion
Mozillion rating
Why buy?Robust, with a couple of extra features
Why not?The Nokia 105 is better value
The original Nokia 6310 launched in 2001, but 20 years later, Nokia rebooted it. The modern 6310 a good deal more expensive than the simple Nokia 105, but you get a few improvements – most importantly, this phone is encased in a strong polycarbonate shell that should shrug off most day-to-day knocks.
Like the Nokia 105, this is a basic phone, with no touch screen and no data connection. There’s a very basic camera, and you can’t add apps as you would on a smartphone. Instead, you’re stuck with a pre-installed copy of Snake, along with an FM radio and a player for MP3s – assuming your children know what they are. This phone also has battery life to put any smartphone to shame – Nokia says it’ll go three weeks between charges on standby, or provide 19 hours of talk time.
The Nokia 6310 costs more than twice as much as the 105, and offers little more in the way of features. Having said that, its tougher shell should give it a longer life. While the Nokia 105 is an ideal first phone, the 6310’s limited entertainment could make it good for pickier children who aren’t quite ready for their first smartphone.
Samsung Galaxy A32
Price £249 (from Samsung)explore our great Samsung deals
Mozillion rating
Why buy?An affordable smartphone
Why not?An affordable smartphone
Samsung’s Galaxy A32 5G is one of our favourite affordable smartphones, which makes it a decent choice if your children are too old for simple feature phones. It’s an Android device, due for three years of operating system updates and a further year of security patches, so it should be a relatively good long-term buy.
The A32 doesn’t win any prizes for performance or screen quality, but it’s perfectly capable of running all the apps your child could need. Inside, its hefty 5,000mAh battery ensures it’ll make it through a long day at school or college – although with only 15W fast charging it’ll take a couple of hours to fully recharge.
Most kids will be more than happy with this phone’s camera system, which combines a 48 megapixel (MP) wide unit with an 8MP ultra-wide and 5MP macro camera. At the front, the 13MP selfie camera supports 4K video at 30fps – more than good enough for TikTok and other social apps.
This phone’s style disguises the fact that it’s one of Samsung’s cheaper efforts, but we wouldn’t expect its plastic back to prove particularly tough. If you’re buying it for a child, we’d strongly recommend getting a good case. So equipped, it’s all the phone your children need – just don’t forget to set up appropriate parental controls.
Apple iPhone 13 mini
Price £679 (from Apple) – get a cheap iPhone 13 mini on Mozillion
Mozillion rating
Why buy?Superb cameras, tough glass
Why not?Too expensive and desirable
Don’t worry, we’re not seriously suggesting you buy a £600 phone for your child, but for some older children, the iPhone 13 mini might be an excellent choice. For a start, it’s very strong, featuring an aluminium frame and Apple’s Ceramic Shield front screen – tests have shown this is much harder to smash than typical smartphone glass. It’s also waterproof – handy for surviving the dreaded toilet bowl drop.
Assuming the iPhone 13 mini does survive a decent length of time, Apple will keep it secure with years of free operating system updates. But why would a child want such an expensive phone?
Chiefly, the iPhone 13 mini has an excellent camera. While it’s not a match for the flagship iPhone Pro models, it’s still one of the best examples you’ll find on a phone. If your child is studying film, photography or other visual arts, it could prove a very useful tool. Camera aside, the iPhone 13 mini is blessed with one of the fastest processors in any phone – handy if they’re into gaming, or they need to run other taxing media apps.
Again, this phone is overkill for the majority of kids, but it might be suitable for older students with a good track record of looking after their belongings. If you’re tempted, protect it with a case and a good phone insurance policy.
Apple iPhone 12 mini
Price £579 (from Apple) – check out Mozillion’s iPhone 12 mini deals
Mozillion rating
Why buy?As tough as the iPhone 13 mini, but cheaper
Why not?Still overkill for most kids
Apple’s iPhone 12 mini is still available new. Shop around for a good price and it’s a bargain next to the iPhone 13 mini, but you can save even more with a certified refurbished iPhone 12 mini.
Why would you want to? Happily, the iPhone 12 mini has many of the newer iPhone’s strengths. It’s very tough and waterproof, increasing the chances it’lll still be in one piece come the end of term. It’s also very fast, being more than capable of running recent games and the most powerful apps. Again, it has years of Apple support left, too, so it should stay secure for a long time yet.
While the iPhone 13 mini has a significantly upgraded camera, the iPhone 12 mini is still capable of impressive quality – especially in low light conditions. For older kids – especially those who need to photograph or video for their studies – it could prove a strong companion. Just remember to protect it with a case and a decent insurance policy.
