AT&T's new phone for kids might solve your biggest problem with parental controls - for $3 a month

AT&T

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ZDNET's key takeaways

• AT&T has unveiled its carrier-designed smartphone for kids.
• The amiGO Jr. phone has extensive parental controls.
• The phone is $3 a month plus monthly service.

If you've been debating whether it's time for your child to have their own phone, AT&T just debuted a product to make that decision a little easier -- a simple device with built-in controls billed as the first carrier-designed smartphone for kids. 

The amiGO Jr. phone was designed in collaboration with Samsung, AT&T says. (It appears to be the Galaxy A16.) It costs just $3 a month, with bill credits, plus your monthly service. 

Also: The best kids' phones you can buy

The amiGO Jr. phone has standard budget-phone specs and a decent-enough camera for your kid to take pictures. It also does all the things you'd expect, like location tracking and alerts when your child leaves or arrives in a preset area, screen time limits, contact controls, and content controls. Parents can control the phone via a dedicated app available on both Android and iOS, and the device itself is IP54-rated for water and dust resistance.

If you're interested in a smartwatch, AT&T also announced the amiGO Jr. Watch 2, a follow-up to the original amiGO Jr. watch that debuted in 2024. It functions much the same way, letting parents track their child's location and control who their kid contacts. 

While AT&T claims this is the first carrier-designed phone for kids, it's worth noting that Sprint debuted the WeGo handset in 2014, a stripped-down phone for kids that let parents control who their kids contacted and even limited texting to preset messages. That device was discontinued in 2019. 

What's different about the amiGO Jr. phone?

So what sets this device apart from similar offerings?

There are already several smartphones designed for kids, like Bark and Gabb (both are also Samsung phones), and it's true that kid-specific features like these already exist. But those often work with third-party apps that might or might not work. I saw this myself when I got my son his first phone last fall and tried to install a popular parental control app only to find out it didn't work with his device (after I had already paid for the subscription). 

The biggest advantage here is that since everything is built in, the controls should all run smoothly.

Also: The best parental control apps to keep your kids safe

As a parent who is currently navigating the kids' first phone waters, that last part is especially intriguing. The current parental control app I'm using often adds time to my son's daily total when he's not using it, requiring me to go in and add more, and it often lags by several minutes in showing his current location. Additionally, my son has figured out that if he accesses any web browser logged into my Google account, such as my laptop lying around or my phone, he can sneakily adjust his time for the day. 

I can't really think of any additional control features I'd add, but if AT&T's controls simply work as advertised, the amiGO Jr. phone could be a huge step up from existing options, especially with its low price.