This is where TimeWize Parental Control hopes to bridge the gap between allowing children to develop their skills by interacting with technology, and spending too much time on these devices. TimeWize is an app that was developed by two Midrand residents. It allows parents to limit the amount of screen time that their children have on cellphones, tablets and desktops.
Siblings, Barend Craven and Robyn Howes developed the app after noticing that their children didn’t take the time to enjoy the beauty of nature during a family holiday but were rather focused on their cellphones and tablets.
“We were on a summer holiday in Dullstroom and all the kids were indoors on the sofa playing on their phones and tablets. I suggested to my sister that there should be an app to prevent that and thus the application was born,” said Craven.
He said what made TimeWize special was that it gave parents comprehensive control.
Commenting on child safety and the dangers of allowing children access to the Internet, Craven said, “We do urge users to remember that when you give a child an Internet connection, you are giving them access to an adult world. We do encourage a more effective parenting approach to online activities.”
He admitted that their app’s focus was more on screen time than security issues. “However, we have found that restricting the time spent online generally increases the quality of the time spent online.”
There are a number of similar apps available, but Craven insisted that being able to set a schedule and the ability to lock apps sets theirs apart from the rest. “The most important feature of TimeWize Parental Control is the ability for the child to ask to use each app individually when the Android phone or tablet is locked by the preset schedule.
“The child asks to use an app by selecting the app. They then are offered the option to send a request to use the app. The request shows as a notification on the parent’s phone, which they can then approve for a period of time or decline,” he said.
Craven said the response to TimeWize has been overwhelming. “While all parents enjoy the ability to control the time their kids are spending on their Android devices, some really enjoy the messaging, and almost all really like the fact that they can lock down their children’s devices at bedtime,” he said.
Details: Download the app from Google Play
