Comcast’s parental control feature for the Xfininty xFi WiFi dashboard is letting parents monitor and control more than just applications their kids use on devices. It’s giving them the option to limit internet use via the WiFi network.
Comcast Parent Control Feature: Active Time Alerts
Comcast is letting parents control their child’s screen time by setting their internet use to a specific time limit and cutting them off when that time is up. The new Active Time Alerts feature on the Xfininty xFi platform will notify parents when their child’s WiFi usage on their home network is approaching an allotted time.
Setting up Active Time Alerts is fairly easy. Parents begin by selecting their child’s profile within the Xfinity xFi app and set specific weekday and weekend time limits across their child’s assigned devices. Parents can choose how they receive their alert — via, text, email or push notification — and take action by either extending the time or pausing WiFi access altogether.
Active Time Alerts don’t have to be permanent. Instead, they can be customized for instances such as laxer schedules when school’s out. With the end of summer approaching, this can be especially helpful. Trying to distribute time for kids to complete homework and chores when they’re distracted by their devices can be difficult. Comcast allows for structuring this time.
Kids are spending more than 6 hours on their screens a day
A survey commissioned by Comcast found parents responding that their teens would be more interested in surfing the internet than ocean waves. Indeed, 76% of parents said their kids are more addicted to their devices than candy.
Market researcher, Childwise, a leading specialist in research with children and young people, compiled The Connected Kids Report containing data from 1995 to the present day to create a comprehensive picture of children’s media habits. Two thousand children, ages five to sixteen, were surveyed online about their screen time. The results: kids are spending more than six hours a day on their screens.
The Comcast parental control feature is giving parents access to transform the way their child approaches the web in the digital age. Spending too much time surfing the web or browsing through social media at a young age can impede a lot of a child’s development. It can also get in the way of social interactions, including that with the family. Active Time Alerts may not be a permanent solution to kids who can get past these limitations, but it’s a start.
Read more about other useful Parental Controls.
Comcast lets Parents Cut off their Child’s WiFi Connection — Sources
BBC: 6 and half hours a day
Healthy Children: Effects of Media on Children
Comcast: Comcast Launches Parental Control Feature
Engadget: Comcast now gives parents the option