Our society is growing increasingly more digital every day. The global pandemic has only exacerbated our “plugged-in” state with Zoom conferences and higher than ever social media use. Yet, as adults and teens continue to aimlessly scroll through feeds or watch what seems like a never-ending slew of YouTube content, the question of how to keep children away—or at least their digital interactions to minimum—is at the forefront of parents’ minds. When we see a young child zoned into an iPhone, we often react with “that’s so sad, when I was their age, I played outside with friends…,” or something along those lines. It’s an unfortunate, yet common scenario. Luckily, one company is stepping up with a solution. Gabb Wireless has created a cell phone just for kids.
Stephen Dalby, the founder of Gabb Wireless, created the Gabb Phone when he saw a clear gap in the market. While the father of eight was searching for an appropriate first phone for his 12-year-old son he realized that all the options before him were far too convoluted, would expose his son to unsupervised online browsing, and were way too pricey for a child. Since his main reason for the phone was simply to stay in contact with his son via calls or texts when he was at school or with friends, Dalby decided he had to take matters into his own hands. And so, the Gabb Phone was born.
The phone is minimal, with the main functions being calls and texts, but that’s the whole point. It is meant to alleviate both the access and need to scroll for hours online and on social media, freeing that time up for growth, personal development, hobbies, friend and family time, and schoolwork. “The great thief of opportunity today is distraction,” Dalby explains. With Gabb cutting out the digital noise, while still ensuring that parents can communicate with their kids when needed for safety purposes, it appears to be the exact solution we’ve been searching for.
Although there are plenty of life-hack and organization apps on the market that claim to solve the problem of productivity in today’s world, the Gabb Wireless approach of “less is more” may be the digital detox our kids—and maybe even adults—need.