Two Carriers Drop Kid Phones

In a pretty clear sign that kiddie handsets are not terribly popular with parents or kids, Verizon and Cingular are dropping two phones marketed to young children from their retail store lineups.

Verizon Wireless is sidelining LG's Migo phone (pictured), while Cingular is removing the Firefly. Cingular will continue to sell the Firefly online, but not in its retail stores. Verizon is discontinuing Migo sales in both venues. Firefly Mobile will continue to sell the Firefly on its web site and at major retailers such as Target, Kmart, and Toys R Us.

Both phones do not have a standard 10-digit keypad; instead, they have five buttons that can be pre-programmed with telephone numbers for home, parents' cell phones, and any numbers parents want their children to be able to call. But as young kids have become hip to their older siblings' cell phone ways, they don't want anything to do with handsets that broadcast "little kid phone."

So, phones like the Migo, Firefly, and Wherifone's Wherify end up satisfying a small niche of buyers, parents who want their young children to have a phone for safety's sake, so they can contact their kids and their kids can call them if needed. A Verizon Wireless spokesperson told RCRWirelessNews that parents have been favoring the LG 3450L, which supports text messaging, for kids.

Look for big-name carriers like Verizon and Cingular to follow companies like kajeet, which has launched a service geared toward 'tweens with budgeting and fun content options, and Disney Mobile, which led the move toward mainstream handsets and full services for 'tweens that can be controlled by parents and kids.

Kids are smart and savvy from a very young age about what they want in a phone if they are lucky enough to get one. It looks as if carriers are becoming more savvy about what 'tweens want, too.

Related:

Kajeet: A Cell Phone Service for 'Tweens
Hands-on Review: Disney Mobile Phones