The FiLIP is a watch that is a sort of mobile for kids that can make and receive calls, and also transmit its location based on GPS.
The creator of FiLIP, Sten Kirkbak, once lost his three-year-old son in a shopping mall. They finally found him after 30 anguishing minutes, but after living through the experience, he decided to invent something to prevent other parents from having to go through the same thing. And thus was born this sort of mobile for kids, although it’s more of a watch with phone capabilities. But don’t be fooled into thinking it’s a smartwatch; the device is limited to be used only for its intended purpose: to locate the child.
FiLIP is designed specifically for kids between the ages of four and eight. Its bright colours and simple, easy-to-understand interface make it more appealing to small children. And of course, the device is as tough as any other object that’s intended for kids of this age, including water resistance.
Essentially, this mobile for kids allows calls to be made and received from five telephone numbers, which have to be saved in the device’s phonebook. Any number that tries to contact the device but is not stored in the list is blocked. To call, the child selects the contact with the green button (there are just two buttons to simplify things) and presses the red button to start the call.
The five selected telephone numbers can send messages with up to 24 characters to the FiLIP device, although the child won’t be able to respond in the same way. The watch connects to a mobile application that allows parents to pinpoint the location of their child at all times (with a record of the last 48 hours), contact the child or see if he or she is in a safe zone (previously set by the parents from the application).
The red button can also be used as a panic button. If the child keeps it pressed for three seconds, FiLIP sends a signal to a call centre, where an operator will try to contact the five numbers that appear, to later establish a line of communication between them and the device. But the child can’t contact emergency services directly.
FiLIP costs 200 dollars and for now is only being sold in the United States. This mobile for children is intended to provide an alternative to buying smartphones for small children, which is an option that has occurred to more than a few parents at this point.
