Just wondering...how old were you when...

you got your first MP3player and/or cell phone? My 9 year old is begging for an iPod and I'm thinking "what does a 9 year old need with an iPod?" I told him I'd consider it when he could tell me the name of his fav band/singer. He managed to come up with "The George Lucas Band" (kid's a StarWars freak). So any opinions out there? What's an appropriate age for these things?

I saved my money and bought an iPod when I was a freshman in high school. I had a portable CD player since 5th or 6th grade before that. I would say it also depends on how many songs/CDs he has.

I had a cd player when i was like 8 years old...mp3 was more like 11...cell phone wasnt until 14

Oh Yeah.



I paid for everything with my own money...even when I was 8..had like an 80$ cd player lol

[quoteace0715327="dupebag"]I had a cd player when i was like 8 years old...mp3 was more like 11...cell phone wasnt until 14

Oh Yeah.



I paid for everything with my own money...even when I was 8..had like an 80$ cd player lol[/quoteace0715327]

I didn't get a cellphone until I was 18. Really had no need until then.

Buy him one of those chinese shuffle knock-offs for $20.

I never had an ipod, mp3 player or a cell phone when I was a kid. didn't get a cell phone until I was about 20 and I still don't have an ipod or an mp3 player.

I had a CD player when I was in 4th grade. Bought myself my own mp3 player with my own money when I was in 7th. Got a track phone by riding my bike to k-mart when I was in probably 7th or 8th grade. Then got a real cell phone when I was I think a freshman or sophomore in highschool.

I got my first CD player and CDs when I was 12 or 13. Before that, I was only marginally interested in music.

Do his friends have iPods? If he's "begging" for it at that age, my guess is that it has more to do with a desire to be perceived as cool than it does with a desire for the thing itself.

CD player when i was in 12 8) cellphone when i was 15 and i got my MP3 Zune "best thing ever made" when i was 19 8)

I got my first MP3 player in 8th grade, first iPod my sophomore year (from FreeiPods.com), I had a cell phone starting freshman year, but didn't really use it much until I got my driver's license before my sophomore year.

just got my ipod 3 months ago, and my first cell around the same time ) lol

They didn't have MP3 players when I was a kid. I had a Sony walkman when I was a teenager, which I bought for myself. First cell phone was this massive thing I got in my 20's.

I'd never buy a kid an MP3 player or phone. Kids don't look after stuff.

[quote0f40add75d="JennyWren"]They didn't have MP3 players when I was a kid. I had a Sony walkman when I was a teenager, which I bought for myself. First cell phone was this massive thing I got in my 20's.

I'd never buy a kid an MP3 player or phone. Kids don't look after stuff.[/quote0f40add75d]


Glad my mom wasn't like you 8)

[quoted8352488aa="gmario"]CD player when i was in 12 8) cellphone when i was 15 and i got my MP3 Zune "best thing ever made" when i was 19 8)[/quoted8352488aa]

I have a Zune.

Best thing ever.

What color is yours?

i got a tight Brown one 8)

You should ban your kid from music if that's his favorite band.

[quote7fbc9058a1="KeithA"]
Do his friends have iPods? If he's "begging" for it at that age, my guess is that it has more to do with a desire to be perceived as cool than it does with a desire for the thing itself.[/quote7fbc9058a1]

I thought that was it, but apparently, none of his friends have iPods. He says he wants it to download and watch movies. He already watches too much TV and too many movies, so I'm thinking no iPod for now. And I really am impressed that the majority of you earned your own stuff instead of relying on Mom or Dad. My heart wants to just give in and get him everything he wants to make him happy, but my head (and wallet) is screaming "No way!". So I think he'll just have to either wait until he can buy it for himself like a lot of you did, or at least until he's much older. Thanks for all the feedback!!

[quotebe761ff0ac="maksmom"][quotebe761ff0ac="KeithA"]
Do his friends have iPods? If he's "begging" for it at that age, my guess is that it has more to do with a desire to be perceived as cool than it does with a desire for the thing itself.[/quotebe761ff0ac]

I thought that was it, but apparently, none of his friends have iPods. He says he wants it to download and watch movies. He already watches too much TV and too many movies, so I'm thinking no iPod for now. And I really am impressed that the majority of you earned your own stuff instead of relying on Mom or Dad. My heart wants to just give in and get him everything he wants to make him happy, but my head (and wallet) is screaming "No way!". So I think he'll just have to either wait until he can buy it for himself like a lot of you did, or at least until he's much older. Thanks for all the feedback!![/quotebe761ff0ac]

Yeah, I learned to work for my money by working summers in a green bean canning factory. That was every day 630-5.

My friend's 10 year old little brother was begging for an iPod Nano so they bought him one for Christmas. A few days after he got it, he lost it. A few weeks later they found it in one of their household plants.

CD Player - Like 9 or 10

MP3 - About 13

Cell Phone - 15

well, technology has changed drastically in the last 2 or 3 years. Like 3 years ago, not many ppl in High School have cell phones. Now almost everyone has one. My 12 year old sister in middle school has one.
Point is, cell phone and mp3's are the new technology thats common among younger kids now. Pretty soon 9 year olds will have cell phones. lol

Well, since mp3 players come out within the last 5-6 years, I really was "of age" already.. but with tape players and cd-players, I started getting those at around that age.. but those were less expensive than today's mp3 players..

Maybe get him a 256 MB easy-to-use one ?

[quote27abe2ed9f="BlueX"]Well, since mp3 players come out within the last 5-6 years, I really was "of age" already.. but with tape players and cd-players, I started getting those at around that age.. but those were less expensive than today's mp3 players..

Maybe get him a 256 MB easy-to-use one ?[/quote27abe2ed9f]

Oh, yes! I remember cassette players. I went through two of them. 1 I had forever it was sooo cheap and I wore it out. The other was better, my mam got me that one. Oh man the memories.

[quote3964a71b22="J4320"]My friend's 10 year old little brother was begging for an iPod Nano so they bought him one for Christmas. A few days after he got it, he lost it. A few weeks later they found it in one of their household plants.[/quote3964a71b22]

WTF??? What would posess anybody to put an ipod in a plant?? And how could you forget about something like that.

[quotec1dc4dff37="stueybaby17"][quotec1dc4dff37="BlueX"]Well, since mp3 players come out within the last 5-6 years, I really was "of age" already.. but with tape players and cd-players, I started getting those at around that age.. but those were less expensive than today's mp3 players..

Maybe get him a 256 MB easy-to-use one ?[/quotec1dc4dff37]

Oh, yes! I remember cassette players. I went through two of them. 1 I had forever it was sooo cheap and I wore it out. The other was better, my mam got me that one. Oh man the memories.[/quotec1dc4dff37]

Yeah, I think I went through about 4 or 5 of those darned things.. I used it a lot though, was awesome for vacations and searching for radio stations when we passed through towns P The buttons would frequently break though.. they weren't very reliable for me P

[quote01add62ee1="BlueX"][quote01add62ee1="stueybaby17"][quote01add62ee1="BlueX"]Well, since mp3 players come out within the last 5-6 years, I really was "of age" already.. but with tape players and cd-players, I started getting those at around that age.. but those were less expensive than today's mp3 players..

Maybe get him a 256 MB easy-to-use one ?[/quote01add62ee1]

Oh, yes! I remember cassette players. I went through two of them. 1 I had forever it was sooo cheap and I wore it out. The other was better, my mam got me that one. Oh man the memories.[/quote01add62ee1]

Yeah, I think I went through about 4 or 5 of those darned things.. I used it a lot though, was awesome for vacations and searching for radio stations when we passed through towns P The buttons would frequently break though.. they weren't very reliable for me P[/quote01add62ee1]

The first super crappy one I had didn't have radio stations. The second one I had did though.

I loved mine. I used to take it everywhere. And it was huge. But I seriously took it and listened to it all the time. I think that is what has also caused me to go deaf. Any trip or just around the house. I would sleep with it. I remember I had this awesome cassette, it had a bunch of billy joel, and a ton of old 70s music that I seriously loved!! But I can't remember the songs. I wish I could though. They were classic, my dad made them for me. Funny that an 8 year old can love 70s music.

I'm not really deaf, but my hearing isn't as good as it should be.

[quoted4b3f0583a="stueybaby17"][quoted4b3f0583a="BlueX"][quoted4b3f0583a="stueybaby17"][quoted4b3f0583a="BlueX"]Well, since mp3 players come out within the last 5-6 years, I really was "of age" already.. but with tape players and cd-players, I started getting those at around that age.. but those were less expensive than today's mp3 players..

Maybe get him a 256 MB easy-to-use one ?[/quoted4b3f0583a]

Oh, yes! I remember cassette players. I went through two of them. 1 I had forever it was sooo cheap and I wore it out. The other was better, my mam got me that one. Oh man the memories.[/quoted4b3f0583a]

Yeah, I think I went through about 4 or 5 of those darned things.. I used it a lot though, was awesome for vacations and searching for radio stations when we passed through towns P The buttons would frequently break though.. they weren't very reliable for me P[/quoted4b3f0583a]

The first super crappy one I had didn't have radio stations. The second one I had did though.

I loved mine. I used to take it everywhere. And it was huge. But I seriously took it and listened to it all the time. I think that is what has also caused me to go deaf. Any trip or just around the house. I would sleep with it. I remember I had this awesome cassette, it had a bunch of billy joel, and a ton of old 70s music that I seriously loved!! But I can't remember the songs. I wish I could though. They were classic, my dad made them for me. Funny that an 8 year old can love 70s music.

I'm not really deaf, but my hearing isn't as good as it should be.[/quoted4b3f0583a]

I was gonna say, a cassette player made you deaf?? Hah.

That's crazy, I remember putting those tape recorders up to the car/home stereo to record our favorite songs that would play on the radio.. Sometimes my bro and I would just record the radio for hours and then listen to those tapes..

Gosh those things were annoying trying to fast forward/rewind all of the tape until you got to the song.. not to mention if you accidently had the tape on the wrong side you'd have to flip it over and rewind the whole darn thing again..

Hahaha yeah i remember the rewinding and Fastforward. And I too woudl sit for hours and listen to the radio for music to record.

And it made me hard of hearing because I listened very loudly.

Argh, Children getting cellphones at like... Age 10 is ridiculous. Completely unneccessary.... My cousin has a cellphone, and she's 11.. I think.. So unneccessary. The only time she's away from home is for school, and She gets picked up from school everyday. Theres no need to pay monthly for a cellphone at that age...

[quote22a2f56d45="KnightTrader"]Argh, Children getting cellphones at like... Age 10 is ridiculous. Completely unneccessary.... My cousin has a cellphone, and she's 11.. I think.. So unneccessary. The only time she's away from home is for school, and She gets picked up from school everyday. Theres no need to pay monthly for a cellphone at that age...[/quote22a2f56d45]

Yeah, I think you're right about the cell phone thing...maybe in middle school. I mean, really, who would he call? Me? From the back of the mini-van with me driving him somewhere? I'm going to hold off on getting him any new gadget for now. In fact, I should have learned my lesson with the DS Lite he got for Christmas from his aunties. He loved it for the first couple of days. Then he got together with some friends who also got one and they sat on the couch not 3 feet away from each other ferociously sending messages back and forth. I'm like "you're right there, talk to each other!" But, no, they're too cool for that. Now that the magic has worn off, it sits on his desk, not lost or broken, but totally untouched. I think I'm the only one who plays it...

We picked up an "emergency" cellphone for our kids (1, 5, 7, 10) because we have no landline. It is a prepaid virgin. $20 at target. $0.15 per minute with no fees. We have to fill it with $20 every three months. It's almost time for me to fill it and we still have $10 left on it. I'd consider this for one of my kids alone if they needed it - $20 every three months isn't bad.

As for me, first cassette set around 12. First cell around 23. Still no ipod but I hope to get a free one soon. wink If your son wants to watch TV on it then you're probably talking at least a $250 ipod which is way overkill for that age.

Cellphone; i think i was 12 or something like that. But I paid for it myself, it was a prepaid. First Mp3 play I think I was 13 but again I paid for it. Ipod; 15 got it from trainn.

Get one of those cheapo iPods and get one of those cell phones that can only dial 4 numbers and 911...

RCA Lyra 20GB Portable Media Player for $100 on woot-off (http//www.woot.com) right now...

My first cell phone was around 12 or 13 and I shared it with my brother. I got my first iPod/Mp3 player two years ago from Trainn. -)

I entered the cell phone age a few years ago. I still dont have an Mp3 player yet.

I had a cell before all my friends but it was a brick and it was lame...

[quote19583cce0a="petieroman"]I entered the cell phone age a few years ago. I still dont have an Mp3 player yet.[/quote19583cce0a]

No Mp3!!! You need to get crackin on the freebie sites and get one for free.

[quote3ebbb0d0d7="maksmom"]you got your first MP3player and/or cell phone? My 9 year old is begging for an iPod and I'm thinking "what does a 9 year old need with an iPod?" I told him I'd consider it when he could tell me the name of his fav band/singer. He managed to come up with "The George Lucas Band" (kid's a StarWars freak). So any opinions out there? What's an appropriate age for these things?[/quote3ebbb0d0d7]

This is the perfect time to teach your kid the value of money IMO.

[quoted0c8660e8d="Gigante"][quoted0c8660e8d="maksmom"]you got your first MP3player and/or cell phone? My 9 year old is begging for an iPod and I'm thinking "what does a 9 year old need with an iPod?" I told him I'd consider it when he could tell me the name of his fav band/singer. He managed to come up with "The George Lucas Band" (kid's a StarWars freak). So any opinions out there? What's an appropriate age for these things?[/quoted0c8660e8d]

This is the perfect time to teach your kid the value of money IMO.[/quoted0c8660e8d]

Yep, I totally agree! He's going to have to work for this one. Not that I'm going to send my 9 year old into the workforce, but there are certainly more things around the house that he can do so that when he's old enough to actually get a job, it won't be such a shock to him. You all have given some really great ideas and feedback...honestly, it's good to get opinions from folks like you who (for the most part) are in different situations than my stay-at-home-mom-with-spoiled-kids friends. I don't know anyone in college right now and only know a couple of people in their twenties. The way technology is changing so quickly, you all are becoming the experts. My cell phone is about 3 years old and I love it because it's big enough that I don't lose it in my purse when it starts ringing, but when I pulled it out in front of my younger sister, she started laughing at me for carrying around such a pre-historic item... oops Sometimes I feel old.......

I think I was 17 for cell phone and probably 16 for mp3 player

I got my first cell phone last year (junior year), and my first music player (iPod), last year (junior year).

Yea, do the value of money thing. Give him an allowance for doing chores around the house, or getting good grades. That way he can purchase with his own money. He'll realize money isen't "free" when he has to use his own money to get what he wants.

[quotedeca0b3644="KnightTrader"]Yea, do the value of money thing. Give him an allowance for doing chores around the house, or getting good grades. That way he can purchase with his own money. He'll realize money isen't "free" when he has to use his own money to get what he wants.[/quotedeca0b3644]

True. My dad gave me just a little advise when it came to buying stuff, but in the end never told me I wasn't allowed to buy something.

I ended up not taking his advise ever roll and I paid the price. And now although I make some mistakes, I am much better at handling my money.

I got my first ipod when I was 44 years old. Woohoo. From doing this site. My daughter was 15 when she got hers and she had to use her own money. I think too many kids think they are owed the world to them "just because". No one wants to work anymore. We've become a kid-centered society. Again, just my thoughts...

I was 16 for a cell phone and 23 for an ipod, lol

freshmen year.. first freebie so about 4 years ago 14yrs old

Hello awww well I didnt get my first ipod or cell phone till I bought them. Course Im old.
My son who is 6 years old has a cell phone (the kid one for emergencies or to call me or his daddy when he is at either place). He also has an ipod for when we are on long car rides (filled with disney music). I live an hour and half from his father and Ben doesnt like my 80s music. (lol) Of course my Ben is alittle spoiled. But so was I and I came out alright. P

I'd say that if your child is responsible with the gadgets he already has, and is into music, then by all means get him one. I would start with something cheap and work up form there. Even if he doesn't know the names of any groups at the drop of a hat, doesn't mean he doesn't love music.

I think it took my kids till about 13 or so to get into the mode of wanting to know who sang the songs that they liked so much.

Good luck!

Margot wink

Thanks for the advice, Margot! When I really think about it, he's not quite ready...I think I was also 11 or 12 before I got into music. He wants to watch movies on the iPod, but I'm just not ready to spend THAT kind of $$ on this thing. Maybe the best thing would be for ME to get an iPod and let him borrow it sometimes, just to see how he treats it. I've wanted to get one for myself for a while now anyway, and I could use the kid as my excuse wink.

[quoted668135f07="maksmom"]Thanks for the advice, Margot! When I really think about it, he's not quite ready...I think I was also 11 or 12 before I got into music. He wants to watch movies on the iPod, but I'm just not ready to spend THAT kind of $$ on this thing. Maybe the best thing would be for ME to get an iPod and let him borrow it sometimes, just to see how he treats it. I've wanted to get one for myself for a while now anyway, and I could use the kid as my excuse wink.[/quoted668135f07]

Free site a video ipod. I just won one at an affiliate expo, weeehaw. Now I just have to figure out how to put Anime on it, lol

What kind of anime do you like? I grew up in Japan and watched so much on tv...I don't know too many of the new ones, but I love the classic anime from the '70 and '80. I rented one of the "Uchuu Senkan Yamato (Star Blazers here in the US)" movies for my kids, but it was in Japanese and I just couldn't translate it easily for my kids...

[quotee541876f92="Skimboarder"][quotee541876f92="petieroman"]I entered the cell phone age a few years ago. I still dont have an Mp3 player yet.[/quotee541876f92]

No Mp3!!! You need to get crackin on the freebie sites and get one for free.[/quotee541876f92]

Shoot, It seem like it an act of congress to get a green these days.

I'm only 13 by the way.

CD Player - 5 or 6
Cell Phone - 9
iPod - I could have gotten one for a while but didn't really want one until I was 11. I also just bought a nano for my 7 year old brother who was begging for it, he used it a few times and now I think he forgets he has it.

I'd say if he's really going to listen to music a lot then get it for him, but if he's going to use it a few times then never touch it again as many people do, don't.

when i was in the 8th or 9th grade. I got my first 10gb Ipod refurb, and my dad paid for 1/2 of it. At first I was like how am I ever gonna fill it w/ 10gb of music, but now im thinking about what am I gonna do when I run out of space on my 30gb.

Creative Zen Nano Plus 1GB Dark Blue MP3 Player $20 Or Less After $30 MIR arrow http//slickdeals.net/?permadeal=9387#direct_deal_9387

I got a cassette player back in like 3rd grade, as a gift for my birthday

A cd player in 5th grade as another gift for a birthday

My first cell phone in 7th grade on my birthday (my brother owns a cell phone store...I was started off a little early on this one haha)

And my first ipod around 9th.

I kinda earned the cell phone b/c i worked at his store a bit, and I got the ipod from OC for free. The other two were straight up birthday gifts.

I have a 5 year old and my husband has already bought him an MP3 player. Of course, we load it with kids songs, but things have changed so much in the last few years. I guess parents need to roll with the flow, but with a tight grip on that flow