Sunday, September 9, 2007

Child's play -- Kajeet makes cell phones simple

Man may claim the dog to be his best friend. But that man was never a kid with a Kajeet.

The Kajeet is a cellular phone manufactured for today's busy kids. Since the program is pay-as-you-go, parents and kids can manage the account together. The phones, which are being marketed to the preteen set, have text message and photo capability. When you see how sleek and sophisticated the phones look? Even late teens and adults will be drooling over the device!

I couldn’t understand exactly WHY Kajeet was being marketed to the ‘tween segment. I would love to use this phone – I’m in my mid 30’s. So I decided to conduct an experiment. What would a 14-year-old boy think of a Kajeet? I enlisted the help of super sitter/neighbor Daniel.

Daniel is a busy guy. He plays baseball and football. If he’s not at a game or in practice, he’s at school or hanging with friends. His parents were toying with the idea of giving him a phone so they could reach him when necessary. So we gave it a try.

What did Daniel think?

“I think the Kajeet is a good phone for teenager getting their first phone,” he said. “My favorite things about the Kajeets are the look of the phone’s outside and inside (as well as) the camera. It is also very easy to work.”

What did Patty (his mom) think?

“It’s a nice phone for teens. Easy to use so far,” she said. “Pay as you go is a good starter phone for kids. And its nice to be able to reach him when I want too – especially in an emergency. Also, he has access to 911 anytime and we’ve told him this. Its good for safety’s sake.

From the parents’ perspective there’s a lot to love. Talk time anytime, anywhere, is 10 cents a minute. Photo messages are 25 cents a piece and texting is 5 cents per text message (sent or received). There are no activation or cancellation fees. Plus? Parents can choose when the phone can and can't be used. Parents can also add minutes and monitor talk time online.

What did Daniel like the least?

“My least favorite thing about the Kajeet are the ringtones and the backgrounds,” he said. “Also, there are no free minutes.”

His mom agreed, “I wish there were some “free” minutes available maybe on weekends or at night. This would be a good incentive for kids to use the phone at certain times and not use up a lot of minutes."

All in all, Daniel is keeping the phone. And I’m so happy ‘cause Christmas shopping for our super sitter has gotten much easier. (Daniel is SO getting some Kajeet minutes from us this year! How easy is that!)

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