How to Limit Screen Time for Your Kids on Android and iPhone

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How much screen time does your child spend while browsing the internet? Or playing Fortnite? These are parents’ concerns as technology takes over our lives. 

Parents and Schools can no longer ignore the adverse effects of prolonged screen time. Instead, they must take decisive action to prevent further destruction. From short attention spans, obesity to chronic health issues, extended screen time has contributed to various health and mental issues among children and adults. 

Luckily, there are practical solutions you can implement to protect yourself and your loved ones from too much screen time. In this article, we will introduce efficient ways and apps to limit screen time on iPhone and Android that also allow you to supervise how much time your kids spend on their devices.

How to Limit Screen Time

The two methods below are quick solutions you can immediately implement to limit screen time:

Method 1: Select Appropriate Content for Your Child to View

What contributes to extensive screen time is mindless scrolling with no limits, especially for children. Alternatively, select appropriate content for them to view, such as educational programs, health entertainment, and high-quality programs. 

That way, you’ll know what your child is viewing and can even discuss the content to foster good values. In addition, platforms such as YouTube allow you to download content to watch offline. This can be an excellent strategy to curate content while limiting internet usage. 

Method 2: Use Parental Control Apps to Limit Screen Time

Monitoring time spent on devices can be tricky since you don’t have much control over your child’s movements. This is where apps come in handy. For example, a parental control app allows you to remotely limit screen time on Android, iPhone, and desktop computers, help you set schedules, block inappropriate content, and track which apps your kid spends most of their time on. An example of such an application is FamiSafe from Wondershare

Wondershare Famisafe gives you a detailed insight into how a child interacts with their device and limits excessive screen usage. It is also scalable and can be used in schools to control device usage among students, as it covers three critical aspects of digital safety: control, track and detect. 

  • You get to control time spent on their devices to help form good digital habits.
  • Real-time tracking of a child’s whereabouts for safety and security. 
  • To detect any malicious attempts on the internet that could cause harm to your child.

With FamiSafe, you get a wide variety of parental control features such as:

  • Block content and apps remotely: As a parent, it’s important to stay informed about your child’s content viewing activities and the apps they are using. With the remote block feature, you can block content and websites that aren’t appropriate.
  • Geofences and instant alerts:  Know when your child leaves home, school, or other locations with the geofencing feature. Get instant alerts on your phone if they arrive or leave their designated area.
  • Access to TikTok history: Likewise, FamiSafe provides you remote access to your child’s TikTok history so you can check what they watch or who they interact with. This helps you protect them from predators and cyberbullies.
  • Real-time location and access to location history: Keep the kids safe with the real-time location feature. You can track their whereabouts at any time, making sure they don’t visit places they aren’t allowed to go to.
  • Web filters with 10+ built-in web categories: To make sure your child doesn’t access harmful websites, FamiSafe has 10+ built-in categories that include adult content, drugs, violence, and gambling, among others. You can also add custom categories that you want to block.
  • Access to the browser and incognito internet history: FamiSafe also gives you access to the browser and private (incognito) internet history so you can remotely track what your kids look up online.
  • Detailed driving reports: Receive comprehensive teen driving history reports every time they take a trip. Get to know more about the specifics of their journey, such as top speed, average speed, total driving distance, and more. Reviewing teens’ weekly driving reports helps them develop good driving habits.

How does FamiSafe work?

Setting up FamiSafe is a quick and easy three-step process:

Step 1: Start by installing the app on your primary device (Caregiver’s device). Then, you can download FamiSafe from Google PlayStore or App Store. Next, register an account with your email address or through third-party accounts like Facebook or Google. Then, log in and click on “Start” to begin the process of linking your child’s device to yours. 

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A pairing code will come up after you click “Start.” Here, you’ll be prompted to install FamiSafe Jr on your child’s iPhone or Android device. Then, follow the instructions displayed to set up the app.

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This is the screen you’ll get once you install the app on your kid’s phone. Key in the pairing code displayed earlier on the primary device. 

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Once you pair both devices, the following screens will prompt you to add your child’s name and age, then click next. You can use a nickname or their real name. 

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Step 2: Next, grant FamiSafe access to your device’s apps by enabling accessibility permissions in your phone’s settings. Granting access allows FamiSafe to start monitoring phone activity.

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Activate display over other applications to allow continuous monitoring even when the apps are blocked.

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Step 3: In the subsequent screens, activate app supervision, notification access, device administrator permission, contact list, and location permissions, then clickon “Grant.” 

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You’re now all set! You can now proceed to explore parental control features relevant to your needs. You can set rules across Android, iPhone, Fire OS, Windows, Mac, and Chromebook devices for each feature.

Step 4:Tap “screen time” from the main menu of Famisafe and then tap “set screen time limit”

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On there, you can set the length of time that you want to block access to the app.

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Once done, you’ll see a countdown timer that shows how long the Screen Time Limit has.

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As technology becomes more influential in our daily lives, it’s critical to implement effective controls that safeguard your child’s privacy, ensure they don’t spend their entire lives online, and create a balance between digital and real-life interactions. 

Availability

Famisafe is now available on iOS,Android, Kindle Fire, Mac and Windows devices.

Conclusion

Wondershare’s FamiSafe empowers you to improve your household’s digital well-being. It is a comprehensive solution to help limit screen time on Android and iPhone. With powerful features like location tracking, app blocking, and other parental controls, you can keep your family safe while they’re using their mobile devices. Now Famisafe is available for download on both Google Play and the App Store, then don’t hesitate to try it out for free. You may be surprised at how much easier it is to limit screen time once you have the right tool.  

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