Pencils? Check. Notebooks? Check. Backpack? Check. State-of-the-art smartphone? Wait, what?
You know it, because you’re probably already hearing it from your kids: back-to-school lists have gone high-tech. While you weren’t looking, your kid’s most-wanted school supply went from a cartoon character backpack and colorful pencil case to a $1200 phone that, let’s face it, they’re more interested in for their social life than for social studies. But the truth is that kids do need that tech now more than ever before.
As much as we might want to ‘back in my day’ the situation, modern academics are built around technology. Writing and turning in assignments, researching projects, putting together presentations, and even talking to teachers is done digitally through email and school communication apps. Today, learning to use this tech is as much part of education as math and history, but while 94% of US schools claim to provide essential tech to students in need, these underpowered Chromebooks just aren’t preparing kids for the real world. In ecoATM’s survey of 1,000 parents of school-aged children conducted with Pollfish, 65% said they considered buying new tech for their children once a year, with 56% expressing the need for modern devices to ensure their child has technology literacy.
Yet even as parents come around to the idea of purchasing a smartphone or other piece of tech for their children, one factor is shouting alarm bells from the rooftops—the price. It’s not just the mounting costs of extracurriculars, the looming spectre of high-priced college, the fact that teenagers could rival a professional basketball team with the amount of food they eat, or the fact that life in general is just more expensive these days. It’s the fact that kids just don’t take care of their stuff.
Nearly half of these parents (49%) said they are purchasing tech replacements at least once a year! Shelling out $800 for the least expensive new iPhone stings, but doing it twice a year is madness!
The vast majority of teens who drive wind up in used cars, but only 32% of parents consider looking into used or refurbished tech. I’m sorry, what?
Pre-owned devices are the ultimate pick for parents who want to get their kids the tech they need but know in their hearts they’ll end up replacing it well before it’s time for an upgrade. The best part? Kids can’t tell the difference between a brand new phone and a certified preowned one. As smartphone innovation has slowed, so has the need to spring for this years tech. The emojis are the same, the apps work the same, and for connoisseurs of a certain fruit-named brand, the text bubbles are still blue.
Pre-owned tech saves you hundreds of dollars you can use for the rest of their back-to-school supplies, and they still get tech that’s only a generation or two behind but can do all the schoolwork (and more) they need to do. It’s an easy way to help your back-to-school budget make the grade and get a gold star from your teen.