Thursday, April 25, 2024

Verizon dials up ‘Just Kids’ smartphone plan

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In 2019 it’s no longer unusual for kids to have phones – even smartphones with Android or iOS. We’re well beyond the discussion of whether or not they should have them; now, it’s a matter of which models to buy.

Many parents can attest that having a child or two on your family plan can be risky. Will they run away with the allotted data, chewing through Snapchat, YouTube, and endless re-watching of The Office on Netflix? How much data is enough? Sure, unlimited sounds great on paper, but it gets slowed down to a crawl if you’re not careful.

Verizon’s got the answer to this dilemma, or so it appears. The carrier this week introduced a new “Just Kids” option which is designed with the young user in mind.

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The Just Kids plan gives users unlimited calls and texts to up to 20 parent-defined contacts as well as 5GB worth of 4G LTE data. In reality the data is unlimited but speeds are throttled at the 5G mark.

Video streams are limited to 480p, or “DVD quality” and similar to what T-Mobile offers in its plans. Moreover, users cannot tether another device or use the phone as a mobile hotspot. Both details are likely trivial to a typical child but are worth noting in the event you were thinking of adding it for yourself.

Additionally, the plan gives parents peace of mind in the ability to track the respective device’s location, limit online time, and filter content. These are what you’d find in Verizon Smart Family Premium’s parental controls, which is normally $10 per month.

To sign up for the Just Kids plan one must add it to an existing family plan with unlimited data. Adding it to a single line plan costs $55 for the Just Kids line; it’s $45 on a three-line account; add it to family plans of four or more for $35.

Feature Image via Verizon

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