Your 10-year-old needs to call a friend, but you’re not ready to hand over a smartphone.

What’s happening: Parents across all 50 states are installing old-fashioned landline phones for their children as an alternative to smartphones, with companies like Tin Can now serving customers nationwide plus Canada. What started as a niche solution is becoming a genuine movement.

Why this matters to all parents: The smartphone dilemma is universal—every parent faces the moment when their child asks for a phone. The landline revival offers a middle ground: connection without the social media rabbit holes, gaming addiction, or mental health concerns that come with smartphones.

The bigger picture: This represents parents actively pushing back against the assumption that kids need smartphones to function socially. They’re finding creative ways to give children independence and connection while delaying exposure to the full internet.

Here’s what’s driving the landline comeback, how it’s working for families, and whether this retro solution could work for yours.

What Parents Need to Know

The trend gained momentum after the 2024 publication of Jonathan Haidt’s “The Anxious Generation,” which argues smartphones are hampering children’s social and psychological development. While researchers continue debating the exact links between social media and mental health, parents aren’t waiting for consensus—they’re taking action now.

The modern “landline” isn’t exactly what you remember. Companies like Tin Can offer landline-style phones specifically designed for children, allowing calls without internet access, apps, or the addictive features that make smartphones so consuming.

One Indiana father, newspaper publisher Chris Hardie, installed a traditional landline for his fifth-grade daughter Ava this spring. “Access to social media and the kind of social experiences that those bring are going to be hard and complicate life in all sorts of ways,” Hardie explained. “We’re going to try to wait as long as we can”.

The appeal goes beyond parental control. Kids themselves find the technology intriguing—Ava says her friends “think it’s really cool that I have a landline” because “they think it’s kind of old-timey”. The novelty factor makes the limitation feel less like punishment and more like having something unique.

What Other Parents Are Doing

The approach varies widely based on family needs and children’s ages. Some parents are installing traditional corded phones with actual landline service. Others are using VoIP (internet-based) systems that look and function like landlines but use home WiFi.

Tin Can co-founder Chet Kittleson says he wanted to “give myself and other parents something they can just always say yes to”—a device without the constant worry about what children might encounter.

Ava’s experience shows both the benefits and limitations. She uses her landline to call friends and family, enjoying the novelty of a dedicated phone line. She does wish the phone could text because her friends are starting group chats, but she says she’s “okay with not having one for now”. Interestingly, she’s already eyeing the next retro upgrade—a rotary dial phone.

Some parents combine landlines with other solutions: basic flip phones for texting, smart watches for GPS tracking, or dumb phones that call and text but can’t access social media. The common thread is delaying smartphone access while still allowing communication.

The movement aligns with groups like Wait Until 8th, which encourages parents to pledge not giving kids smartphones until eighth grade, creating community support for holding the line.

How This Affects Your Family

For parents considering landlines:

The landline option works best when:

• Your child primarily needs to reach you or close family/friends
• Friends’ parents are also delaying smartphones (reducing social pressure)
• Your child’s school doesn’t require smartphone apps for assignments
• You have a safe route for them to get home where GPS tracking isn’t critical

Challenges to consider:

• Group chats are increasingly how kids coordinate plans—your child may be left out
• Emergency situations where location tracking would be valuable
• School and extracurricular activities that communicate via apps
• The eventual transition to smartphones will still need to happen

Age-specific considerations:

Elementary school (ages 6-10): Landlines can work well. Kids this age primarily need to call parents and aren’t yet deeply embedded in digital social dynamics.

Middle school (ages 11-13): Gets trickier. Research shows 45% of teens themselves now say they spend too much time on social media, but peer pressure intensifies. A landline might work if multiple families coordinate.

High school (14+): Very difficult. Most teens need some form of mobile communication for activities, jobs, and staying connected.

Conversation starters for your family:

“What would you need a phone for right now? Let’s list everything and see what device actually fits those needs.”

“How do your friends communicate with each other? What would it be like if you couldn’t join those conversations?”

“What worries you most about getting a smartphone? What worries me most?”

Source: Vox

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