No idea -- as my daughter is young enough that we have not had to discuss this yet. But I would love some insight from others on how they have handled this. I love technology, but it definitely raises different issues than what our parents dealt with.

My boys both got theirs (simple, "non-smart" phones) as they started middle school. But my daughter got hers earlier because I thought she needed it to connect with her dad without going through me.
We've hadguidelines for texting etc - and (knock on wood) so far they've all been very responsible (once the initial novelty wears off) .

My kids were growing up just a cell phones were becoming common (they are all in their 20's now), so it wasn't even an issue until high school. They all had cell phones that they used primarily for when they were out of the house. The youngest wasn't allowed to take a cell phone to school when he was in high school. But they were quite handy at times when emergencies came up or when they needed to be picked up from somewhere. I would say that kids of about 10-12 should have a cell phone for emergencies at least.

You'd be surprised. A friend's daughter, who is 4, is questioning when she'll get a cell phone. I think it might be more about seeing Mommy and the phone so she wants one, too. But still, it's prevalent in their daily lives at a very young age.

I didn't have a cell phone until my sophomore year of college. I could've had one freshman year, but I had to pay for it myself and I'm cheap. Through high school, we would take my mom's cell phone when we'd go to the movies or elsewhere so we could alert her if we'd be late or if there was an emergency. But it was returned to her that night and there was no way I could text day and night with my friends. To be fair, most of my friends didn't have their own cell phones either. That's a relatively new phenomenon. But I still think the idea of turning the cell phone in to parents every night, regardless of how young you buy them their own, is a smart strategy.

My 7 year old has asked us when she is getting her "first cell phone", as if she instinctively knows that there will be a succession of better and cooler phones in her future.

My son got his first cell in 5th grade at the insistence of his father and much to my disapproval. I didn't think he needed a phone at that time, but that's probably a story better suited for my column called "When you and your ex differ on how to raise your child".

I got one for my son when he started attending outside activities such as ice skating or the mall where we would drop him off with friends. That way he could call me if something came up or call when he was ready for a ride home. I think it was 6th grade.

I just found a very cool cell phone jammer.

google :- yapper zapper phone jammer