Young people are spending an extraordinary amount of time using digital devices. According to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, children in the United States between 8 – 12 spend between four and six hours in front of a screen every day — and teens rack up even more screen time, logging up to nine hours a day. The pandemic only increased the time kids spend online, so how can parents manage their screen time and ensure the content they view is appropriate?
Enter the FamilyTime app. It’s available for Android, iOS, and Amazon Fire devices, and is one of the most comprehensive parent control apps on the market. It boasts dozens of features, many of which are quite unique. In this FamilyTime app review, we are going to go over some of those features, and highlight whether this app is right for your family.
FamilyTime App Review
FamilyTime provides parents with a versatile array of features designed to limit when kids can use their devices and for how long. Parents can schedule device usage down to the hour, blocking devices completely for set periods of the day like dinner, bedtime, or homework time. Parents can also use FamilyTime to simply limit a device’s access to the internet so that kids can still call their friends, take photos, and use other applications offline. The app even allows parents to set limits on individual apps, setting a maximum amount of time a child can spend playing a certain game or streaming movies.
The app also has features to regulate the type of content children can access online. The internet filter has newly updated algorithms and extensive key term indicators to ensure the content children are viewing online is not inappropriate. Parents can block specific apps either permanently, temporarily, or only during specific times. Also, when any new app is downloaded on the kids’ device it is blocked by default, and can only be used after a parent has reviewed it.
FamilyTime doesn’t just protect kids from threats online. Kids can tap the PickMeUp or SOS buttons to alert their parents in case they need them. Parents are also able to check on their child’s location 24/7. The geofence feature allows parents to set up areas and alerts them if their child leaves or enters the area. FamilyTime can even alert you if your teen is driving too fast.
All in all, FamilyTime is the complete parental solution for parents of this digital age.
How It Works
Once parents have set up their FamilyTime account, they can log in to the dashboard from their PC or download the parental app and use it on their phone. From the dashboard, parents can see all the devices they are monitoring, how much time the kids have spent online, and how much time is left on their usage limits. The number of children’s devices each account can monitor is determined by the membership plan, but an unlimited number of adults can be added to a single account, allowing parents to grant access to as many caregivers as they need for free.
To add their child’s device to the account, parents need to download the app to their child’s phone. Once the app is added, it can only be removed if a security pin is entered. Children can open the app on their phones and see how much device usage time they have remaining for the day.
One of the best parts about FamilyTime is it works with the knowledge of both the kids and the parents. There is no sneaking around, no cloak and dagger. Parents don’t have to fear their children finding out that they are monitoring their digital activities. Unlike many other software and tools available for monitoring, FamilyTime is out in the open and encourages parents to have an open dialogue with their children about safe practices.
Pricing
FamilyTime offers all new members a free 3-day trial. Parents can try it out, see if it is right for their family, and decide if they want to keep the membership. Annual memberships cost only a few dollars a month per child device.
In addition, FamilyTime is offering 35% off its 3 child plan. With these savings, you can monitor three devices for roughly the same price as the single device plan.
Digital devices are here to stay, and FamilyTime can help parents navigate these sometimes crazy waters. Sign up for their free trial to see if it’s right for you.
FamilyTime App Review Sources – American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry