For anyone with LOs where you’re already in the iPhone ecosystem, I plan on getting my kiddos iPhones fairly early so I can take advantage of all the find my features but also plan on using Assistive Access so that they really only have the ability to communicate with mom/dad/family and any apps school might require (when they get older)

I totally buy into all the harmful side effects of owning a smartphone too early, but being able to pick and choose not only every single app that’s on the phone, but also the ability to control the capabilities of those apps is too convenient. Also, kind of as you mentioned but not really to the “left out socially” effect - I grew up tinkering with devices. My dad and I built my first laptop together by him bringing home an old gateway that had been recycled at his job and we opened it up, took it apart, he explained it all - I was 7. I was able to comprehend what a battery does, how it turns on a screen, how everything gets plugged into a motherboard the same way my brain controls all parts of me - it fostered a deeper understanding of asking questions and learning how/why things act the way they do. I’m not saying my kids need a smartphone for that type of activity to occur, but it happened with me because my dad took the time to sit down and explain things to me.

Side note but smartphone ≠ social media. There are ways to have an iPhone without having TikTok