Adam is very excited to be starting secondary school this September. It’s a big step for him, and I want to get him a new phone that he’ll enjoy using but is also practical and with a long battery life. There are so many phones out there, at different price points, that it’s difficult knowing what to choose. I have a budget of around £160 and the Hawk from EE comes in under this price at £119.99, and has everything I’m looking for and more. Let me tell you why…
It’s hardwearing and safe
Adam isn’t great at looking after things, and I’ve had visions of his new phone being broken in the first week. So, it’s vital that the phone I choose is strong and sturdy. The Hawk is cased in Gorilla Glass, which not only makes it look super smart, it protects it from being bashed about inside a schoolbag too. It also has a fingerprint scanner and secure NFC payment features, so if it’s mislaid or stolen any important info is kept safe. And none of his friends will be able to ‘borrow’ it and update his Instagram with something silly – you know what kids are like!
It has plenty of appeal
I read in a previous EE blog about Hawk that kids really like it, and that intrigued me. While I know Adam would love to have the new iPhone like some people in his class, my budget just doesn’t stretch that far. But all the same, I want to be sure that he will like the phone and be happy using it. As the 5-inch screen is larger than quite a lot of other smartphones and is HD, it’s perfect for when he plays games or watches videos. It also makes it easier to navigate through the features, just like on some of the more expensive phones.
It’s superfast
Thanks to the phone’s in-built technology it can take full advantage of EE’s superfast 4G speeds, so streaming videos and playing games online will be a lot smoother. I’ll also have peace of mind knowing that I can always get in contact with him when I need to, whether that’s by call, text or WhatsApp.
It comes with headphones
Like most kids, Adam loves his music. The added bonus of Hawk is that it comes with a free pair of JBL headphones worth £29.99, so that’s something else I don’t need to splash out on. They’re great quality headphones and he’ll definitely get a lot of use out of them.
But which price plan?
Pay As You Go from EE is a great option for secondary school pupils, as it helps them learn to limit their usage in order to make their top-up last for the full amount of time it’s valid for. It’s also extremely good value, with packs starting from just £1. And many packs let them roll data into the following month, so if they haven’t used it up in time they won’t lose it. Also, every time you buy three packs they’ll get a free boost of data, minutes or texts.
Flex Plans also look like a great option, as a parent you can set up an automatic monthly payment that gives your kid allowances for the next 30 days. They can't go over that allowance unless you have credit, so you don’t have to worry about getting a big bill at the end of the month.
In that sense they are similar to Pay As You Go as they offer complete freedom as there is no contract, and allowances can be changed at any time. However, they’re slightly easier to manage as you just set up one regular payment. They still come with a data boost every three months, and any unused data will roll over into the next month.
Staying safe online
There are so many dangers surrounding kids accessing the internet nowadays, so it’s reassuring to know that EE have partnered with Internet Matters to help keep children safe in the digital world. The ‘Start the school year safe online’ campaign has some great advice and handy guides to help parents get the school year off to a good start. There is even a section on moving to secondary school, which I will definitely be reading as Adam starts his secondary school adventure.
Another way EE is helping to protect children is by ensuring Content Lock is switched on by default on all new phones and tablets. This makes sure all adult content is automatically blocked. And if you download the My EE app you can personally moderate the kind of content your child can access online, such as explicit music and video.
A great choice
So as you can see, I’m pretty won over by all the features that Hawk offers. Combined with either a Flex plan or Pay As You Go from EE, I think I’ve found the perfect phone to suit both Adam's needs and my own.
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