With schools returning in full force, a question many parents will be asking themselves is: how can I stay connected with my child without buying them a smartphone before they’re ready? All parents want to expose their children to appropriate technology in a responsible way.
Introducing Neo, the Disney smart kids watch that gives your children a sense of independence while letting you stay in touch and even monitor their child’s movements throughout the school day.
With them every step of the adventure: Their First Smartwatch
The Neo smart kids watch should be on every parent’s radar. This smartwatch, which is part of the Designed & Connected by Vodacom range, is a fantastic gadget that will give kids a sense of independence while giving their parents peace of mind, through intuitive design.
Out of the box, the smartwatch certainly looks the part; aimed at children aged between 6 and 9 years, Neo comes in two eye-catching colours (Mint Green and Ocean Blue) and is waterproof for up to 1.5m submerged for 30 mins. It also comes with an ergonomic strap that can be adjusted to fit every wrist, even offering the option to tilt the watch face so the user doesn’t have to strain their head to look at it.
Staying Connected
Connectivity between parents and their kids is a key aspect of Neo. It provides parents with a window into their children’s activities, as well as letting them know precisely where they are at all times. This is due in no small part to the Vodacom built-in SIM of the device, which lets parents and kids communicate when needed.
Neo’s SIM connects to Vodacom/Vodafone’s trusted global network, which means Neo can connect with smartphones over very long distances. There is also no need to top up with airtime or data as Neo’s monthly subscription fee is an all-inclusive deal.
If you are concerned about your child being distracted by the smartwatch during class, you can easily activate the Quiet Mode to kill off all functions on the smartwatch and to only tell time. The remote access and monitoring – available through the Vodafone Smart App – is another major selling point for the device, as everything is managed in one app. This allows parents to locate Neo’s whereabouts on a map via their smartphone, ensuring they always know where their child is while wearing it.
Neo brings peace of mind and fun together for parents and kids alike, while sprinkling a healthy amount of Disney magic into the mix. It works to keep kids active and interested in exploring their environments while at the same time offering parents reassurance that this technology is both reliable to use and handy to keep tabs on their children’s activity.
Parent-friendly
Neo boasts a camera for kids to capture those snapshots while out and about. It allows them to communicate with the trusted contacts chosen by their Parents using chats, calls and emojis via their smartphones. It has an activity tracker which records the number of steps they take and unlocks new challenges as current ones are completed, a calculator and up-to-date information about the weather. On top of that, it houses a calendar into which both the child wearing it and the parent who is monitoring it, can enter events and activities in the scheduler.
Through the Vodafone Smart App, parents can organise their kids’ schedules via the calendar app, but they can do so much more. It’s a fun and funky device for kids on the move and there are tons of features on it to keep tykes occupied. But for parents who may have concerns about the technology their kids use, or the way it is used, Neo is ideal.
They can look through the pictures that their child has taken while on their adventures and check their activity progress. Parents can curate up to 9 trusted contacts, which are the only contacts with whom the Neo primary owner can share access from content to calls and chats. Parents can also manage their child’s screen time through its Quiet Mode. And another winner for parents, Neo cannot be used to browse the internet.
Buddies and features
Fire it up, and users have a series of ‘buddies’ to choose from – iconic characters from © Disney. © Disney/Pixar. © & ™ Lucasfilm Ltd. © 2021 MARVEL. – which not only gives their smartwatch a cool theme, but the characters themselves leap into action whenever the user checks their device.
At present users have a choice between Minnie Mouse, Elsa, Iron Man, Buzz Lightyear, Darth Vader, Micky Mouse, Rapunzel, Black Panther, Woody and The Child from The Mandalorian TV series (or as we all call him, Baby Yoda), but more are reportedly on the way, and will be available at no extra charge via device firmware downloads. Besides opening the watch’s user interface with a flourish, Neo’s ‘buddy’ will also offer the user encouragement as they go about their activities.