Not so smart…
Why you shouldn’t buy a fitness tracker for your kids
As a mother of three boys, my days are largely spent trying to keep up with my children. So I was nonplussed when I heard that a smartwatch for children, with features including a pedometer – in other words, a gadget designed to get them to move around
even more – is the must-have gift this Christmas. But sure enough, Hamleys has tipped the Vtech Kidizoom Smartwatch DX to be one of this year’s top-selling presents.
I order the watch for my children to try, and it doesn’t take long to have the desired effect: my nine-year-old is soon thundering up and down our hallway with even more purpose. “I can keep track of my running, jumping and dancing!” cries Caspar, abandoning the sprinting exercises and bouncing on the spot like a manic kangaroo. “I’ve done 75 steps!”
There’s no denying that child obesity is worsening in the UK – this month, it was reported that one in three 10- and 11-year-olds are overweight. Still, the idea of a pedometer for children concerns some parents and experts, who say that walking, running and jumping should be joyfully organic for youngsters. “The best way to have a long and healthy life is to take exercise throughout your life – and the best way to get kids to exercise is having them do something they enjoy,” said psychologist Linda Blair.
However, the Vtech manual states that this is a ‘‘kid-friendly version of a pedometer… just for fun and… not as accurate as a commercial pedometer for adults.’’ And they do not tell a lie.
My suspicions are raised when Caspar returns from his school day, most of which he spends fidgeting at a desk, having clocked up nearly 7,000 steps. To be fair, it emerges that he did ‘‘cross-country running’’ with his class (a lap round the park), and took part in a half-hour cycling proficiency trip.
Soon, my junior detectives determine that the Kidizoom’s pedometer counts the slightest arm-movement as a step. To their great amusement, the pedometer’s generous estimate means that a lazy Saturday lolling about the house playing games on the PS4 (my estimate: a disgraceful 300 steps) clocks up 6,500 steps – the same reached after 90 minutes of cricket.
“I’ve done 103 steps just lying here!” reports Conrad, 12.
The Kidizoom Smartwatch (about £36) boasts a broad and impressive range of features, but the sad fact is that by seven – if not earlier – most children have experience of an iPad, an adult’s smartphone, or console video game – meaning that they’re accustomed to using complex, pin-sharp, advanced technology. It’s too basic to hold their interest, and its limitations frustrate them. “The scanning doesn’t work!” exclaimed Caspar, trying to take a ‘‘special effects’’ enhanced photo of himself.
Caspar, nine, did briefly amuse himself with the watch’s camera, and there are sweet features: kids can ‘‘scan’’ their fruit or vegetable-related ‘‘Monster Identity’’ – Caspar was curiously thrilled to be defined as a ‘‘Carrot Cruncher”.
Even Conrad, somewhat older than the intended wearer, liked using the Smartwatch to film himself and his brother playing cricket.
I was happy for the Smartwatch to entertain my children, until Caspar became engrossed in ‘‘the cat game’’ – Super Snowboard, in which a feline joins a snowboarding competition and needs help to glide down the mountain, collect golden fish and win a trophy.
“It’s literally making him less intelligent,” my husband barked. “He’s got an extra screen he doesn’t need!’ The truth is, if your little darling is going to demand a video game, you’d prefer it to be a creative and complex endeavour such as Minecraft.
In fairness, Vtech advertise this gadget as suitable for children aged four upwards, with nine as the recommended limit – and everything about its design, from the brightly coloured plastic strap to the vast selection of cute, toddler-friendly clock-face designs, is aimed to appeal to the younger child. With this in mind, the boys lend their smartwatches to our neighbours, Marcus, seven, and Louisa, eight. They both “voluntarily started to exercise with it”, notes their mother, Claire. Marcus became quickly engrossed in the games and liked the clock display, which has a speaking function.
Meanwhile, Louisa enjoyed the audio record function, which allowed her to apply voice-changing effects.
Parents can set the Vtech Kidizoom Smartwatch to ban access to games (or, indeed, download more). And yet, what parent wants their primary-school child walking around with a screen strapped to their wrist all day?
Meanwhile, Caspar soon abandons his watch for a game on the iPad. The Kidizoom Smartwatches are well-priced for what they offer, but our digitally literate little ones are sophisticated customers – and there’s no going back to basics.