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> I am terrified about giving smartphones to my kids. Hey smartphone makers, if you're listening: Let me set an alternate PIN that unlocks the phone in a limit
by DamnInteresting 9y ago
> I am terrified about giving smartphones to my kids.
Hey smartphone makers, if you're listening: Let me set an alternate PIN that unlocks the phone in a limited access mode, or "kid mode." Only pre-approved apps are available. Only pre-approved contacts can be called/texted. In-game purchases require the more secure PIN. Maybe when the phone is in this mode I can track its location easily, and make it emit a noise. The maximum volume is much lower than normal. A lockout timer auto-locks the phone after X minutes. If the battery dips below 20%, only the voice calling, texting, and tracking will work. Bandwidth caps. Et cetera.
This would also be nice if I ever have to lend my device to a stranger. Smartphone OS makers should be embarrassed that this feature doesn't already exist.
- Diederich 9y agoOur teenage son carries a flip phone. Always has, always will, until he can pay for something else.
- Mankhool 9y agoIf I didn't work for a telco, I would still carry a basic phone.
- Diederich 9y agoThe thing I really, really love about having a Google Pixel phone is the camera, and its with me all the time. I was riding my bicycle to work on Friday and saw the sunrise...it was quite beautiful: https://www.realms.org/pics/IMG_20180105_072614_1.jpg https://www.realms.org/pics/IMG_20180105_072614_1.jpg Besides that, I have very few apps installed on my phone. I basically use it as a mobile web browser from time to time.
- TeMPOraL 9y agoThat's a pretty picture. I wonder though, the beautiful Voronoi-like patterns between the leaves are an intentional effect, or camera quality issues rendering as something nice by accident?
- Diederich 9y agoThere's very little deeply 'intentional' about any picture I take. I tend to take virtually no time for composition, and shoot some large number of pics when something catches my eye. I'm told by people who do have some actual talent that a small fraction of the pics I take are good. For this picture, I was actually riding my bicycle, and snapped two dozen shots over 30 seconds.
- rangibaby 9y agoPhones jam a lot of pixels into tiny sensors so need to apply agressive noise reduction. I think that’s what you are seeing.
- tkoski-hs 9y agoI switched back to a "good old plain, non distracting phone" 2013 (http://www.atterobay.com/public/upload_images/model_images/o... http://www.atterobay.com/public/upload_images/model_images/o...) and have been pretty happy. That said, I have to admin that the "features" I'm missing are a camera and a map.
- justinclift 9y agoURL seems truncated?
- hockeybias 9y agoI'm with you! I'd love a smartphone that has a great camera, access to map & weather info and nothing more!
- Nition 9y agoI used to have a Nokia 6700 Slide that was pretty much that, but sadly it died. No GPS though, just maps.
- collinmanderson 9y agoHah. I carried a point and shoot in my pocket from 2004-2010, until I got an iPhone. I used it for telling time, taking photos of maps and other useful notes, etc. Super useful.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- excalibur 9y agoI tried to buy my son the most basic phone available. $5-$10, no camera. I wanted it to do phone calls, texts, and that's it. Turns out it still had a rudimentary browser. And because the phone was only capable of 3G, his basic line had unlimited data. He spent a ridiculous number of hours watching YouTube on that tiny 1.5" screen.
- djsumdog 9y agoMaybe Motorola needs to bring back their old Razor phones?
- unicornporn 9y agoNokia is already at the retro game: https://www.nokia.com/en_int/phones/nokia-3310 https://www.nokia.com/en_int/phones/nokia-3310
- imglorp 9y agoSame for mine. I figure if he displays the maturity and initiative to get a job, then he's qualified.
- Diederich 9y agoFor us, that's part of it. The main reason is how worried we are about the impact unfettered, always on, modern Internet/technology will have on the developing brains of teenagers, and beyond.
- steve_adams_86 9y agoI don't think the impact was great for me, honestly. And that was 15 years ago. The internet is a different place now - maybe not for the better.
- taoistextremist 9y agoI'm pretty sure my current phone (Samsung Galaxy S5) literally has a Kid Mode that does a lot of this stuff. And that came out, like, 4 or 5 years ago?
- alexman 9y agoiOS has a Guided Access mode that does some/alternatives of what you said like lockout timer: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202612 https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202612. I always use it when I let my kid use my iPhone/iPad.
- r00fus 9y agoWow... I would love have this mode on all the time. (of course, it will never happen because such a mode "reduces engagement")
- alsetmusic 9y ago> Hey smartphone makers, if you're listening: Let me set an alternate PIN that unlocks the phone in a limited access mode, or "kid mode." Only pre-approved apps are available. Only pre-approved contacts can be called/texted. In-game purchases require the more secure PIN. Maybe when the phone is in this mode I can track its location easily, and make it emit a noise. The maximum volume is much lower than normal. A lockout timer auto-locks the phone after X minutes. If the battery dips below 20%, only the voice calling, texting, and tracking will work. Bandwidth caps. Et cetera. I don’t understand how this is different from parental controls (speaking from iOS experience; perhaps this is lacking on Android?)
- DamnInteresting 9y agoIs there a way to enable parental controls with an alternate phone unlock PIN? If so, then my comment is silly and I am silly. If not, then it stands. That's where the control belongs, so one can freely share a working PIN with one's kids, with no need to turn on a setting buried in menus (not to mention always remembering to do so).
- TheCoreh 9y agoWhy would you _share_ a phone with your kids? Isn't the whole point of giving your kids a phone being able to call them or have them call you when an emergency arises?
- tonyarkles 9y agoNot that I particularly agree with this, but I've seen it enough to recognize it as a use case. You're at a restaurant with your kid, and they're bored because you're having adult conversations with your friends. You give them your phone and they play whatever game for a while, while you have no need for your phone because you're in a conversation. Or, alternatively, you're sitting around the house and they want to play a game on it.
- roganartu 9y ago
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- indexerror 9y agoWindows Phone 8.1 had an amazing feature called Kid's Corner[1]. Galaxy phones have a similar Kids Mode[2]. [1] https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/10661/windows-phone-set-up-kid-s-corner https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/10661/windows-phone... [2] http://www.samsung.com/global/galaxy/apps/kids-mode/ http://www.samsung.com/global/galaxy/apps/kids-mode/
- jdietrich 9y agoIt's a standard feature on Xiaomi phones. You can set up two user profiles, each with a different lock screen password. Each profile is effectively a different phone - different apps, different settings, even a different SIM card if you like. http://xiaomitips.com/guide/how-to-use-miui-8-second-space-feature/ http://xiaomitips.com/guide/how-to-use-miui-8-second-space-f...
- andrepd 9y agoIt's a standard feature in Android phones in general.
- jdietrich 9y agoReally? Guest mode is a standard feature since Lollipop, but that just logs you into a completely blank account without any installed apps or user data. You can switch Google accounts, but that's a multi-tap process that can't be activated directly from the lock screen. Second Space isn't unique in functionality, but it's exceptionally slick in execution.
- pritambaral 9y agoAndroid supports multiple profiles, not just Guest Mode.
- jakobegger 9y agoI‘m pretty sure Apple won‘t do that, because they want you to buy your kids their own iPhone. Why doesn‘t the iPad have this sort of multi-user mode? An iPad is the perfect device for sharing. But no, if you don‘t want your kids to read your emails, you need to buy them their own iPad.
- mkl 9y agoBuying kids their own phone is what this leads to. The kid only knows the kid-mode PIN for their own phone.
- prawn 9y agoThis would be a phone for the kid that was locked into basic mode during school hours and then maybe unlocked on weekends or for a game session. Once upon a time, kids went to school without phones, so it is possible...
- DavideNL 9y agoThere's some of that in iOS: "Settings -> Restrictions", which will be locked by a passcode. It has a lot of options, but probably not enough (like restricting specific apps.) You can however set to allow only apps rated "4+ years, 6+, etc. Time limitation is possible too, via "Settings -> Accessibility -> Guided Access".
- bonestamp2 9y ago> if you don‘t want your kids to read your emails, you need to buy them their own iPad. You're right. But I still think I would buy my kid their own iPad even if my iPhone/iPad had a kid mode. My kid has their own iPad and I still find times when it would be ideal to give them access to the basic features on my phone/ipad. Frankly, if iOS just added the ability to password protect any app then that would be good enough, and it would be useful for more than kids... hand you phone to a coworker or relative to look at photos they can't accidentally/intentionally hop over to your email.
- nitemice 9y ago
- shawnz 9y agoMultiuser support is built into Android in recent versions.
- vog 9y ago> In-game purchases require the more secure PIN Wait, what? I'd rather say: No in-game purchases for minors at all.
- Cyphase 9y agoI think that's what was meant; a limited access PIN for the kid, and a "more secure" full access PIN for the parent. That way the parent can approve in-game purchases and that sort of thing if they wish.
- ProAm 9y agoThey have programs that do this now. I dont know them off the top of my head by I know parents that have full control over their kids smart phone from their phone. They allow apps to be run in certain time windows, or lets the parent lock and unlock them at will, etc...
- dragonwriter 9y agoThere are a number of apps which provide a mode with features like that, including some first-party ones from handset manufacturers like Samsung's Kids Mode.
- hbosch 9y agoI do think the Fire Tablets have this feature.
- thinkling 9y agoYes, Amazon FreeTime lets you set limits on the amount of time kids play games or watch videos. You can also require that they spend a minimum amount of time reading or using educational apps before they can get their games/videos.
- noobermin 9y agoWhat age group are you talking about? Under 10 or under 13? There are things like kid tablets.
- nkkollaw 9y agoAndroid has limited access accounts, which would do many of those things.
- u801e 9y ago> Let me set an alternate PIN that unlocks the phone in a limited access mode, or "kid mode." Only pre-approved apps are available. Come to think of it, there should also be a border mode when one is traveling.
- vtange 9y agoGood idea. Though the phone will have to look like it's not hiding/restricting the officer in any way for this to work.
- DamnInteresting 9y agoI've advocated for that, as well as an ATM PIN to use if one is being forced to withdraw funds. It could alert police, mark the security camera footage to be saved, and show a very low account balance. Try as one might, the world doesn't seem to want to be better.
- csin 9y agoOK I'll bite. I think your solution only solves one edge case. And there are too many other edge cases to warrant spending the infrastructure to fix one edge case. Examples, your solution doesn't solve: - Mugger waits for you to withdraw the money from ATM. - Mugger forces you to withdraw everything AFTER you entered your PIN. - Muggers holding someone ransom until you get them their money. - You are traveling outside of your home country/unreliable law enforcement.
- ImSkeptical 9y agoI'm fairly sure that feature already exists. On Amazon tablets (and phone) it's called Free Time or child profiles. I'm confident there's an Android equivalent. If not, on a rooted Android phone you could just run your own shell script which could periodically check running or installed apps, and close or uninstall undesirables.
- thecrazyone 9y agoAndroid has multiple users mode with a separate pin etc. Not sure about parental controls though
- MaxfordAndSons 9y agoPretty sure GP was talking about giving their children their own smartphones.