Practical Presents for Teens and Tweens: Make the Most of Those Cell Phone Offers and Family Plans

Communications with family members are essential in our busy world, and when it comes to teens and tweens, a cell phone is one of the most practical presents of all. The cost of adding an extra line to cell phone family plans is often quite reasonable; our plan with ATT costs just under $10 for an extra line. Furthermore, cell phone offers abound, and it is usually quite easy to find deals which involve little or no cost, provided you agree to a 2 year contract.

There are a number of factors to take into consideration when selecting a cell phone for your tween or teen, and certainly, family finance is important. However, our reasoning has been that we want the older kids to have the ability to contact us when they are away from home, and therefore, a cell phone is a necessity. Why not make it a birthday or Christmas present? Cell phones are practical teen and tween gift ideas.

The age at which your older kids need cell phones will be variable. Some of your decision will be dependent on the maturity of the child. You don't want the expense or security risk of lost or misplaced cell phones, so the young person needs to have a sense and record of responsibility. The individual in question should also show responsibility in handling things. A careless young person with a cell phone may be a bad combination. On the other hand, this is a great gift for emphasizing responsibility. Just make sure you add the optional insurance to your cell phone family plan, as the monthly cost is worth the potential cost of putting a cell phone in the hands of an accident prone kid.

Some of my youngsters have had cell phones as young as 11 years old.  My son received a cell phone as a gift on his 13th birthday, and has handled it well.  It's a judgement call, certainly.  The best age for giving your child a cell phone is the age at which it's a need. 

Accidents happen, and the adults in our household have had their share of cell phone mishaps. When it has come to selecting cell phones for our teens and tweens, some of the kids tend to be more responsible than others. Those who we aren't as sure of, we insure. With our ATT cell phone family plan, the insurance is just under $5 per month per phone. My son has done well in the year he has had his cell phone, but his phone spends a lot of time in his sports bag in the dugout during baseball season, and the potential for damage is such that it makes sense to maintain insurance on his phone.

For the phone that may be at risk in the hands of your teen or tween, protective accessories would be a wise addition!

 Electronics are continually being updated, becoming more multifunctional and interesting.  In the words of teens and tweens, more cool!  With cell phone family plans, it is often possible to upgrade your cell phones after a given amount of time.  Many of the more popular teen/tween phones are available for no charge when you upgrade and agree to a 2 year contract extension.  If you are satisfied with your cell phone provider, this is a great option for birthdays or Christmas.  I recently upgraded my daughter's phone for her birthday, and with the help of another teen, was able to find a popular and colorful slider phone.  The upgrade cost was zero, the one time activation cost was added to my monthly bill.   

Aside from the basic charges on your family plan, there are some specific things that you should take into consideration.

• First, text messaging on a family plan is probably going to be extensive. It's a good idea to select an unlimited texting option so that your cell phone bill doesn't incur excessive costs. Some plans allow for limiting the number of text messages your youth can send and receive. If you are concerned about excessive use of the text messaging, it may be a good idea to put those limits in place through your account. Examine your provider's terms, as some controls come at an additional charge.
• Next, internet usage can be expensive on a cell phone which doesn't have an internet plan. Even accidental connection to the internet can incur charges. Check with your provider about the phones available, and possible services for preventing your teens and tweens from connecting to the worldwide web.
• If you determine your plan or provider is not living up to your expectations, it can be very difficult to extricate yourself from your cell phone family plan. It can be very expensive. If you aren't happy with your current provider, wait until your contract expires before you begin to add your kids to your account, and add them when you sign up with a different provider. A friend of mine waited until her T-Mobile contract was complete, and the family switched to ATT before she added her teenage son to the family plan. He received his new touchscreen phone as a birthday gift.

If you are thinking about a cell phone as a teen or tween gift idea for Christmas, many deals are available during Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, and you will find many retailers such as Best Buy offering nice discounts or rewards in conjunction with a cell phone purchase. Many of the cell phone providers will also be providing some great incentives during this season. Watch your provider's website for details on promotions.

 A cell phone is something of a coming of age gift, and thus, is already special.  A fun twist is to have the phone charged and wrapped, ready to go.  Call the phone, and have it ring while still in the box and wrapping!  Don't expect your young person to answer immediately, though, as it may take a moment to remove the packaging. 

Practical, and fun, a cell phone is a great present, and a great way to keep your older kids connected and in contact.

 Thank you to Cyrillicus  for use of the photo on this Hub, which is published under Creative Commons License.