38% of Kids Under 2 Have Used Mobile Device, Says Study

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Common Sense Media, a consumer advocate non-profit, published a study saying that 38 percent of kids under the age of 2 have used some kind of mobile device.

Common Sense Media, a consumer advocate non-profit, published a study saying that 38 percent of kids under the age of 2 have used some kind of mobile device. These children will be raised entirely in the digital age and will almost certainly have a fluency that surpasses even the savviest of today's users.

This study is a follow-up to a 2011 study showing that less than 10 percent of toddlers had used a mobile device.

Quite a few kid-friendly and damage-resistant tablets and phones have been coming to market, which helps to explain this trend especially when combined with the prevalence of things like Netflix for Kids and other similar media solutions.

The study polled 1,463 parents with young children under the age of nine.

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15 Comments Comment from the forums
  • Stimpack
    This confirms my suspicions that those who abbreviate every word with "text talk" are secretly under the age of 2.
    Reply
  • stevejnb
    11817966 said:
    This confirms my suspicions that those who abbreviate every word with "text talk" are secretly under the age of 2.

    Lol don't U wish

    (and the rest of us, for that matter)
    Reply
  • mobrocket
    "Used" I think is being very loosely used (pun unintended) here... Doesn't watching a movie on a tablet count as used?
    Reply
  • WHComp
    I agree with mobrocket, I would really like to know what they mean by "use". I have a son who turns 2 in November. He will see me using my phone, come and grab it and imitate me talking on it. He will also watch it as I do things. Does this constitute "using" my phone? Because there is no way a kid under two is actually doing "real things" on a phone.
    Reply
  • tmk221
    I'vo got 4 year old and she's cannot use phone at all! She can use a desktop PC, but all she does is clicking randomly on icons...:) So I guess that this 38% used mobile devices for watching a cartoon or just playing with it, having no idea what they do..
    Reply
  • tmk221
    I'vo got 4 year old and she cannot use my cell phone at all! She can use a desktop PC, but all she does is clicking randomly on icons...:) So I guess that this 38% used mobile devices for watching a cartoon or just playing with it, having no idea what they do..
    Reply
  • g00fysmiley
    depends on th kid i guess, my 1 year old uses my tablet to draw, and he knows how to pick books on the kindle app when we ask hm which book he wants to read also plays with keyboard and drum aps to make noise no rythm yet but he's 1 so not expected
    Reply
  • JOSHSKORN
    One word: LeapFrog
    Reply
  • Matt White
    I don't understand the value of this story, having your young children getting used to today's technologies should be a normal activity in today's household.

    Technology moves so fast in today's world and it it not going to slow down.

    Having your young children working these devices can only be a good thing, and the media are trying to make a big issue out of it.

    I let my 10 month old daughter play with my iPhone, she knows the home key switches it on and off and she knows swiping her thumb does something but not quite sure what yet.

    If we guard these devices from them, they will only be left behind, these devices are going to be supplying them with their education.

    More and more apps are coming on to the market to educate young children, the digital age is not a fad, its the future, our children are the future, therefore this is the only right way forward for them.

    Albeit we should monitor the usage and apply education apps for them to use, especially language and mathematics, when I say language I would like to see our 'digital age' move away from 'text speak and spell', and use proper spelling.
    Reply
  • alyoshka
    Geeky toddlers?.....
    But tell me there was such a Hu-Haa about cell towers being close to schools etc etc... understandable, but, I bet these very same people are the ones who're letting their 2 year old's near radio emitting equipment....
    Isn't it true according to the medical journals and geeks that human immunity and genes develop and become tougher with age.... since when is a 2 year old developed enough to be able to stand even x amount of radiation from these devices, if pregnant women aren't allowed to be exposed to X-Rays beyond a certain or maybe even nil amount.... how can this be a sign of progress and how is this a plus if (god forbid) the kid happens to be diagnosed with some sort of mutation , say 10 years from now?? Who is going to be held responsible? The irresponsible parent who let his kid be exposed to such devices in the name of keeping them up with present tech or keeping them busy with a toy so that he could finish his work in peace? or then the companies/institutions who are not too sure about what they've got out there in the market and still letting it happen?
    Reply