Setting up WP7 phone for a child?

[chicaguapa]

I've passed my HTC Mozart onto my 11-year old, having got myself a Nokia Lumia.

I've got her an outlook.com email address which knows her dob. I've gone onto Zune.net and made sure her settings are on 'child'. I've added her to 'my family' but because hers isn't a Windows 8 phone, I can't do anything there.

Is there anything else I can do? She had an android with Vodafone before and I was able to restrict browsing, approve people she added to her contact list and block text messages from unknown contacts. Can I do anything like that on Windows Phone 7?

 

[Jazmac]

I've passed my HTC Mozart onto my 11-year old, having got myself a Nokia Lumia.

I've got her an outlook.com email address which knows her dob. I've gone onto Zune.net and made sure her settings are on 'child'. I've added her to 'my family' but because hers isn't a Windows 8 phone, I can't do anything there.

Is there anything else I can do? She had an android with Vodafone before and I was able to restrict browsing, approve people she added to her contact list and block text messages from unknown contacts. Can I do anything like that on Windows Phone 7?

If it were me, I would simply restrict her having the phone at all for more than a few hours per day. She's an 11 year old. She could find other things to occupy her time. Rather than turning her loose in the internet, take her to the library and find some books.

 

[chicaguapa]

How does restricting her to having the phone for two hours a day help with the safety features?

She uses the phone because she travels to school on her own on public transport and therefore needs to be contactable by her parents; the ones that are being responsible by making sure her access to a mobile phone is as safe as we can make it. Surely by looking into the safety features, I'm being the parent! On her android, she wasn't allowed on the internet at all or used an email address. She only has one now because WP7 requires her to sign into Live.

As for taking her to the library instead, she has just got level 6 in her SATS (UK tests) which puts her in the top 5% of 11-year olds in the UK for reading and grammar. I'm not asking for a judgemental tone. I'm looking for an answer to the actual question I'm asking, which is is there anything else I can do on the WP7 safety wise?

 

[Laura Knotek]

What carrier do you have?

Perhaps your carrier might offer the ability to set limits on contacts/SMS/etc.

I do not have any children, but if I did, I could use AT&T Smart Controls. Perhaps your carrier might offer a similar feature.

 

[Jazmac]

How does restricting her to having the phone for two hours a day help with the safety features?

She uses the phone because she travels to school on her own on public transport and therefore needs to be contactable by her parents; the ones that are being responsible by making sure her access to a mobile phone is as safe as we can make it. Surely by looking into the safety features, I'm being the parent! On her android, she wasn't allowed on the internet at all or used an email address. She only has one now because WP7 requires her to sign into Live.

As for taking her to the library instead, she has just got level 6 in her SATS (UK tests) which puts her in the top 5% of 11-year olds in the UK for reading and grammar. I'm not asking for a judgemental tone. I'm looking for an answer to the actual question I'm asking, which is is there anything else I can do on the WP7 safety wise?

I'm with you if she has to travel on her own daily. You kinda left that part out. WP 7 might not be the device for her in fact. Get her something running WP 8. A Nokia 521 or something like that.

 

[xandros9]

Being less than an adult, I would not like that at all. Apologies if I come across as anything negative.

Approving contact list and restricting unknown texts seems too extreme for me, I think a better option would be reserving the right to check her contact list, text messages, and maybe even history at any time since you're her parent and footing the bill.

as for restricting the web, ehhh, I don't like it, but that's irrelevant here. If its to block inappropriate content, i dont think its really going to be worth it if it costs money. But if its things like facebook and other stuff, she probably won't like it one bit but that's a decision for you, since you know her a lot better than I do.

The only option I think you have is the check in with the carrier. (I do not think WP has any on-board restrictions available.)

going for a non-data prepaid plan and restricting the internet at home (wi-fi) is another option imho