Parents turn to smartwatches for their children amid global phone screen-time pushback

SINGAPORE – Ms Shirley Ng’s eldest daughter received her first mobile phone when she turned nine, but her second daughter, Alysandra, now the same age, is not getting the same privilege.

Instead, she was given a children’s smartwatch, allowing her parents to track her whereabouts and exchange quick messages via its built-in Sim card without the need for a phone.

Unlike with a smartphone, Ms Ng, 45, can set aside worries about addictive and harmful online content Alysandra might be exposed to, since features on the watch are limited.

“When we gave Alysandra a smartwatch, of course she asked how come her sister could get a phone at her age,” said Ms Ng, an administrative executive. “But we want to keep her screen time under control. There are fewer addictive activities on a smartwatch.”

Spooked by smartphones and their impact on young people, more parents are picking smartwatches to communicate with their young children while delaying the introduction of smartphones.

Children’s smartwatches are a stripped-down version of a typical smartwatch, and they allow parents to restrict app downloads, usage and calls from an approved list of contacts.

Such smartwatches were the only segment of smartwatches that grew in 2024 even as the global overall smartwatch shipment shrank for the first time by 5 per cent to 154 million units in 2024, vice-president of devices research Bryan Ma from International Data Corporation (IDC) told The Straits Times.

Likewise, overall smartwatch shipments to Singapore fell for the first time by 13 per cent to some 600,000 units in 2024, said Mr Ma.

But the kids smartwatch segment was a bright spot. Both IDC and market research firm Canalys reported that more than 20 million kids’ smartwatches were shipped globally in 2024, an increase of up to 9 per cent from 2023.

Canalys analyst Chiew Le Xuan estimated the Singapore market accounted for 35,000 kids’ smartwatches in 2024, nearly twice that in 2023.

The segment comprises kids’ smartwatches, such as those with Global Positioning System (GPS) and call functions, made by the likes of Xiaomi, Garmin and other brands. Smart wearables that offer contactless payments, such as those distributed by POSB bank for pupils to use in school under the bank’s Smart Buddy programme, were excluded from the count.

The rise of kids’ smartwatches comes amid a global pushback against social media and smart devices. Parents are increasingly wary of the effects of social media and smart devices, with regulators mulling over age restrictions and outright bans on social media to rein in addiction and mental health issues among youngsters.

Singapore’s Health Ministry in January issued stricter guidelines on children’s screen use, advising parents to keep it under two hours per day for those under 12 and limit it to no more than one hour for those under six.

The global pushback against screen time for children have fuelled the growth of smartwatches by Garmin and Chinese tech brands Xiaomi and Huawei that cater to safety-conscious parents, said Mr Chiew.

Watches like the Xiaomi Smart Kids Watch, Garmin Vivofit Jr 3 Kids and Singapore brand myFirst’s Fone R2 smartwatch are priced between $80 and $270 in physical retail outlets such as Challenger, Popular and Gain City and e-commerce platforms such as Lazada and Shopee.

Sturdy and often vibrant in design, children’s smartwatches typically come with GPS tracking for parents to check their child’s whereabouts, and restricted communication features to allow only parents or approved contacts to text or call the child.

Some of these smartwatches also offer parental controls that can be configured to limit app installations or restrict the use of call or text features to after school hours.

The smartwatches require a physical Sim or eSim, paid for and activated separately to enable calls and messaging.

Local brand myFirst sells eSim plans for its line-up of children’s smartwatches from $6.99 a month.

Founded in 2017, the company reported sales of $20 million in 2024, with revenue doubling each year since 2022, said myFirst chief executive and founder G-Jay Yong. 

The company’s growth is largely due to its expansion from a dozen to 56 countries, especially the US market, where its smartwatches are sold in some 800 Walmart Group outlets, he said.

In Singapore, Mr Yong said that myFirst smartwatches are used actively by some 20,000 children accounts, as smartwatch demand grew when outdoor activities resumed after the Covid-19 pandemic.

For parents like Ms Ng, who gave her daughter a myFirst Fone R2 smartwatch in 2024, the location-tracking and restricted communications have offered her peace of mind while holding off on smartphones.

She gave her eldest daughter a smartphone when she was in primary school to contact her after school as smartwatches were not widely used at the time.

“Phones really worry me,” Ms Ng said. “My younger daughter might lose it any time. There’s also addiction because she likes to watch content on YouTube. But with a smartwatch, the functions are much more limited, so it’s not so addictive.”

Ms Rachael Goh, 45, who bought her seven-year-old daughter, Ming Xuan, a children’s smartwatch in 2023, also intends to delay introducing her to smartphones.

Her son, 14, and eldest daughter, 19, were given iPhones when they were around 11 so that they could communicate with classmates for group work.

Ms Goh initially set time limits so that their devices’ features would lock down and display only the time when they were at school or studying. They also needed to seek their mother’s permission to install apps. Ms Goh, who works for a manufacturing firm, said she eased off the restrictions once her children became teens.

She said: “Ming Xuan is already asking for a phone but I tell her it won’t be so soon. Hopefully, I can give her a phone as late as possible. It’s very hard for kids to have self-control.”

Mrs Esther Foong-Tan, the co-founder of SGFamilies, a movement to promote healthy parenting, said parents should exercise caution before handing their child a smartwatch, which can be distracting.

The smartwatch is handy if used solely like a mobile phone to contact the child as it gives parents a sense of security, but they can be distracting if notifications are constantly pinging away, she said.

Said Mrs Foong-Tan: “These are issues parents still need to devote time to tackle.”

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