Gadget Weekly
Join Namerah Saud Fatmi as she explores the cool, quirky, and sometimes downright odd world of smartphone accessories, gadgets, and other nerdy toys every week.
I thought I could use a dumbphone for 24 hours as a working adult, but it turns out that’s impossible in the modern era. However, I found that the vibrant HMD Barbie Phone is suitable for young children and pre-teen kids.
The Barbie Phone is basically a revamped version of the Nokia 2780 Flip, which is the best dumbphone on the market. Both devices are powered by KaiOS instead of Android, lack touchscreens, and have other limitations that categorize them as “dumb” phones. This isn’t all bad, and you still get the basic functions of a mobile phone along with some perks.
The software limitations serve as excellent parental controls while still enabling communication between guardians and their wards. Since KaiOS is much lighter than Android, it doesn’t need a ton of memory to run smoothly. This means that even with 512MB of RAM and 4GB of internal storage, the Barbie Phone doesn’t lag or stutter. You can always expand the memory up to 32GB via microSD later if needed.
Everything is vehemently pink
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Children adore bright colors, so it’s a given that the littles will love this overwhelmingly pink phone. HMD Global partnered with Mattel to deliver the funkiest, grooviest, and most fun packaging I’ve seen for a phone. The HMD Barbie Phone comes inside a pale pink velvet-lined box with a plethora of accessories.
Your kid can knock themselves out customizing their Barbie phone. There are stickers in the box, replaceable backs for the phone, a beaded lanyard, a handful of cutesy charms, and gems to bedazzle the device as well.
The wide range of accessories included in the set encourages children to express their individuality.
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HMD Global includes a bubblegum pink USB-C charger and cable in the box, as well as a pink microfiber cloth for wiping the mirror on the front. That’s right, the front of the flip phone has a real mirror with a tiny LED screen built-in. The screen showcases the time, charging information, and notifications.
Thoughtfully crafted design and software
While the Nokia 2780 Flip has the Kai Store with HTML5 apps like Facebook and YouTube, HMD Global intentionally omitted social media from the Barbie Phone, with the exception of an email app.
The reason for this, according to HMD Global, is to keep the device non-intrusive by removing distracting apps. You only get basics like calls and text messages, Wi-Fi, and LTE connectivity on the device, which is why I feel it’s an excellent phone for younger kids.
Pre-teens whose parents feel they aren’t ready for social media and instant connection with the world still need to be on the grid. The Barbie Phone enables that in a safe and seamless method. It’s an excellent “first” phone for a child, preparing them for the responsibility of having a full-blown phone as well.
It’s not a boring phone either, with plenty of engaging games, an FM radio, and a music player. There are useful pre-loaded apps like a clock, calendar, to-do list, and voice recorder. There’s even a flashlight, a headphone jack, and a single 5MP camera that shoots amicable pictures.
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There’s a customizable Barbie button on the keypad, which opens the camera app initially.
Typing on the old school keypad takes some getting used to, especially for younger generations who never had to use such phones ever before. The pink plastic buttons are easy to click and you get the hang of it pretty quickly.
I’m glad that this concept lives on in dumbphones, reviving and sustaining the nostalgia of the physical numpad.
It’s a small price to pay for a great quality product
HMD Global offers an insanely good price for the Barbie Phone. You can buy it unlocked for about $129.99, often discounted to $99.99 at various retailers like Amazon and Best Buy.
Buying it locked is a smart idea too, as the cell plan from most carriers is filthy cheap. The HMD Barbie Phone works on all U.S. networks, CDMA and GSM alike. Certain MVNOs like Consumer Cellular offer a great deal with plans starting at just $20 a month, which is super affordable.
Giving a full-blown smartphone to kids isn’t a smart idea for countless reasons. More often than not, the cons far outweigh the pros, leaving parents to turn to alternatives like kids’ smartwatches and dumbphones instead.
Few phones are built from the ground up with children in mind. Most brands take pre-existing models and tweak them to make them suitable for kids or teenagers by bolstering privacy and security, and adding stricter parental controls.
A lot of thought goes into choosing a phone for a child. If you’re not keen on buying your 10 to 14-year-old an Android phone or an iPhone, the dumb HMD Barbie Phone is a fantastic choice. It maintains the right balance of connectivity, modernization, and limitation necessary for a younger child without taking the fun out of owning a phone.
It’s fantastic, mostly plastic
The HMD Barbie Phone is a modified Nokia 2780 Flip with loads of fun accessories in the box. It’s an affordable entry-level dumb phone suitable to be any child’s first phone.