Smartphones and tablets - the tech babysitter

Busy parents admit they regularly hand-over their smartphone or tablet to their children – to grab some peace and quiet, a study has found. Researchers found a large percentage of mums and dads who own up-to-date high-tech devices will happily let their children play with them in a bid to catch up with household chores or grab a quiet ten minutes.

Others said they were happy to use their smartphone or tablet as a high-tech babysitter to keep the kids entertained whilst they were dragged around shops or in other public places.

The research, which was commissioned by LifeProof, also found around seven in ten parents feel their children are ‘brighter’ because of their early exposure to technology.

And close to one in three parents with two or more children said they had noticed a difference in the development of their youngest child in comparison to an older sibling, who grew up without technology.

A spokesman for LifeProof, said: ”It’s great to see how many parents are using their smartphones and tablets as educational tools for their children – and that even the very youngest members of the family have something to gain from using these devices.

”With over half of parents revealing their children use apps better than they can, the study shows a real trend towards children using gadgets as part of their learning and development.

The study also revealed one third of parents notice their child is increasingly interested in their phone and tablet and wants to interact with the technology so they can ‘be like mum and dad’.

And nearly two thirds said their child would very often rather play with their mum or dad’s phone or tablet than play with their own toys.

The average parent hands over a gadget to their kids at least three times a week because they’re exhausted.

While six in ten use time on a smartphone or tablet as a way of rewarding their young ones for good behaviour.

The change in mindset is clear – 75% of parents think the ability to engage with technology is now a crucial part of a child’s development.

Results suggest the impact of early exposure is working – one in four parents said their young child is already far more adept at using smartphone and tablet technology than them.

Inevitably, the damage toll is high with a fifth of parents having had a phone or tablet broken or screen cracked after handing it to their children.

The most common cause of damage was items being dropped in the house, while spillages and gadgets being lost completely were common.

The average parent has spent £110 in the last year fixing gadgets, while two electrical devices had been broken by kids in the last 12 months alone.

The LifeProof spokesman added: ”Let’s face it broken gadgets are a sure fire way to put an end to family harmony and so ensuring things don’t come to that is important.

”Things don’t always run smoothly and parents are increasingly in need of the reassurance that expensive damages aren’t just a matter of time.”