So excited to share my review of Gabb Watch today! This post is not sponsored, but I reached out to Gabb to see if they would connect you with a discount code. this link Code FITNESSISTA will receive a $50 discount during the Spring Break sale. (ends on 3/16)
Hi friends! how was your weekend? Hope you have a great one! The girls and I explored a farmers market, went to an event with friends, and Liv had her first dance competition. You shook him! I also got the finishing touches on things for 6 weeks Total Body Reset Kitthat start today. So excited for this!
For today’s post, I’m excited to share a review of missed hour. We got one for Liv’s for Christmas, and now that she’s had the chance to use it for a few months, I thought I’d share my full review. As someone who loves smart watches and is a huge fan of my Apple Watch, I was kind of on the fence about the idea of smartwatches for kids. (If this works for your family, great! It just isn’t right for our family.)
I’m not comfortable that kids have full access to social media or the internet, so I wanted an option to let Liv call us or an emergency contact if she needed us, but without the distraction from games, social media, etc. .
Today’s post is dedicated to Gabb’s amazing watch, what you need to know about it, and I’m going to share all the things I like about it.
Gabb Watch Review
The Gabb watch combines the features of the Verizon GizmoWatch 2 and the Xplora X5 Play. Equipped with GPS tracking, and the ability to call and text a select small number of numbers (10), it’s a great choice among kids who might not be cell phone ready.
Gabb watch features
GPS tracking
Using GPS tracking through the MyGabb app, I can find out exactly where Liv is. It’s not a big concern because it’s so small, but it’s nice to have that ability.
Dedicated safe areas
This is another feature that we don’t quite *need* yet, but that might be especially useful for older kids. You can customize safe areas within the app (such as school, dance, etc.) and receive notifications when they enter or leave custom safe areas.
SOS
Ability to call in emergency and SOS in case of emergency.
before operation
It is amazing. Take it out of the box and it’s ready to go! Just plug it in, connect the app and follow the steps. Also, since we ordered about a month before Christmas, it gave us the opportunity to automatically activate our plan on Christmas Day, so we didn’t pay for an unnecessary month.
step count
Both girls have Fitbits (and love them!) so Liv still sees her in her stride to this day, even though she no longer wears a Fitbit.
Text messages
Texting is so easy! There are pre-programmed texts (“I love you”, “I’m on my way home”, “Call me”, etc.) and emojis. I receive a lot of emojis lol.
Voice messages
Liv can send short voice messages to any of her contacts, which is especially useful for school events. Once, I was planning to stay for Mass at her school and she sent a quick voicemail to say her class wouldn’t be attending that day.
Unlimited calls and texts
You don’t have to worry about using too many call minutes or keeping track of the amount of text messages sent/received. All of this is unlimited under the plan.
scheduling “lock mode”
You can lock the clock during school hours, but the parent and child can call each other, even while the clock is locked.
Sweat, dirt and sand resistant
You don’t have to worry about children playing outside or sweating while wearing the watch. While it is sweat-resistant, they do not recommend submerging the device for a long period of time. They do not recommend wearing it while swimming or showering.
Gabb Watch Monthly Plans
Gabb’s phone is on its own network, so you can’t add it to your existing cell phone plan. It does not require a long-term contract and you can stop or start the service at any time.
Here are the plan options (all prices below do not include taxes):
$9.99/month – 2-year contract
$12.99 per month – 1 year contract. This is the option we chose because I wanted to make sure we liked it!
$16.99/month – no contract
You can also add a warranty option for an additional $4.99 per month to cover drops and spills. We decided to test our luck and didn’t choose it.
My review of the Gabb watch
This watch has brought us peace of mind, especially now that Liv is older and spending more time with friends and in the dance studio. Before Christmas, there was an incident in which she was injured in the gymnastics studio and I wish she had a way to contact me. After this event, I spent a lot of time doing research to figure out the best option. I knew the iPhone was off – I’m not OK with her using the internet without monitoring or accessing social media, especially because I work in the industry – so I wanted to find a secure option that would enable her to call us in case of an emergency.
In the past, she owned a Gimzo watch, but she stopped wearing it because it was too bulky. I ended up canceling it years ago, and I feel like it doesn’t have as many features as the Gabb watch. The Gabb is smaller and fits better on a child’s size wrist, and it has additional features we love, particularly the voice messaging. I know we didn’t use the watch to its fullest, but it was an excellent addition to us.
Great benefit is that The watch cannot receive calls from any numbers that are not in the list of ten pre-set calls. This means that you don’t have to worry about her receiving unwanted calls or receiving calls or texts from someone we don’t know.
The watch does not have games, but it allows you to earn coins and get virtual pets, somewhat like a Tamagotchi. You earn coins by taking care of your virtual pet, and you are currently saving them to buy a virtual unicorn. 🙂
You can exchange watch straps and order a screen protector when you go out. We ended up doing both.
I asked Liv what her favorite feature was and she said, “I can call you if there’s an emergency. It makes me feel like I don’t need a phone, because I’ve begged you for years.”
If you have any questions about our experience, please let me know!
If you decide to buy Gabb’s phone or your child watch for your child, Use this link And code FITNESSISTA with a discount of $50 through March 16.
Tell me friends: When did you get your first phone? what’s its kind? I got the bright pink Nokia when I was 16 years old.
xoxo
Jenna
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