Smart watch for 10yo, or cellphone rather?

[Fairy Nuff]

Good morning everybody,

I am looking for a smart watch for my son, and am out of my depth here in understanding what these things can and can`t do.

The most basic functions it must have are :
1) Be able to make and receive calls to/from parents and other approved contacts;
2) Tell the time, create alarms to get out of bed etc, and be trackable (I though about darting him with a tracker but the missus disagrees)
3) All the other bits about heart beat monitoring, steps a day, blood pressure etc are not really required but will be part of the watch anyway from what I`ve seen.

Now all the phones I looked at do not seem up to this task, but I`m guessing my lack of knowledge and understanding may be the reason for this.

Some require a LTE contract (Garmin), others I read about on Takelot have bad reviews about battery lasting less than a day, bad call quality and a host of other negatives (I guess for R399 you are not going to get much quality). For some it seems you need to have a separate phone and can only make calls from the watch over Bluetooth/WiFi if it is in range

Does such a watch exist where I can simply insert a SIM card and hook up to my cell provider, and then it will have the above features I need? I am reluctant to get him a cellphone for reasons like social media, and the schools dont allow cellphones to be brought in from home.

I hope I gave enough info to work with.
Thank you for taking the time to read my ramblings, all responses with be greatly appreciated.

 

[ChuckMeFarley]

Get a cheap Samsung cell A04, A14 etc.
Create a Google account for said kid and manage it with Family link.
Set up digital well-being with a pin you choose to limit access to apps you don't want them to use.

I do not have little spawns of satan so I have never used the above except Digital well-being. I know my colleague also tracks her daughter's phone either via the Google account or Whatsapp, not sure which one.

Edit: colleague's daughter may also not bring a phone in but she switches the phone off when at school.

 

[Fairy Nuff]

Thank you ChuckMeFarley,

I think the cheap phone route makes sense, especially if I can control what he does on it. There are currently some deals on cellphones I`ve seen where you get a Samsung phone and then you get a second cheaper phone added as well. I previously used NetNanny but it was only a matter of time before he found ways around it.

Much appreciated.

 

[ChuckMeFarley]

This link should be a good start.

 

[Fairy Nuff]

Just to close this off, I found exactly what I wanted :

Child Guardian Pro X

Child Guardian Pro X Recomended for ages 7+ GPS Smart Watch that Teens love and parents trust. GPS Location Tracking. Video & Voice Calling. Voice Messaging Safe Zones. Nofications. Disguised as a digital watch. Get notified during emergencies : In an emergency your child can...

safetyangel.co.za

 

[Nod]

My son, also 10, have my wifes old phone.
I use Google Family Link to control what apps he can see, and how much time he is allowed on the phone.