Sprint Guardian provides multiple ways to keep tabs on kids at Cool Mom Tech

Sunday 16 September

Sprint Guardian provides multiple ways to keep tabs on kids

I shudder when I think about my kids running around as teenagers. I can only imagine the kind of technology that will be available to them and how they and their peers will be using it. I don't envision ever "tracking" my kids via GPS locator, but being that I'm years away from that stage of life, who knows if that will change.

Regardless of what your stance on tracking is, it's nice that mobile phone providers are implementing tools to help keep those lines of communication open between parents and their cell phone-toting kids.

If you're a Sprint customer, you can take advantage of family safety tools now through its Sprint Guardian package. The bundled offering provides parents with Sprint Mobile Controls, Sprint Drive First and Sprint Family Locator.

In particular, I like the idea of the mobile controls - being able to set time parameters on your child's mobile phone usage - and the driving controls. The Drive First function is great because it prevents dangerous driving while texting by automatically locking your teen's phone when it senses movement over 10 MPH and sending automatic messages to senders saying, "will be in touch later."

The Sprint Family Locator lets you track your kids' whereabouts and also set boundaries to get alert when they leave those areas, similar to AT&T FamilyMap which we covered earlier this summer. If you have a teen or two in your household with mobile phones, it's worth looking into your particular network to see what kinds of family tech offerings they provide. If you're a Sprint user, the Sprint Guardian package might be a great investment for some peace of mind. -Jeana

Sprint Guardian costs $9.99 per month and can be used on up to 5 lines on a family plan.

Find More: Apps apps and more apps, Apps for Android, Parents' Lifesavers, Tweens + Big Kids

1 Comment

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Sasha | September 18, 2012 12:31 PM | Reply

That "Drive First" feature is sheer brilliance. If only there were a way to identify the driver, I'd say make it mandatory for ALL phones!!!

And yeah, my kids are just 2 & 3, so not tracking them by GPS, and I hope I never do, but I can certainly see the temptation. After all, I know what I got up to as a teen :)

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