My 8-year-old is starting to walk to school alone and I want a simple phone just for emergencies. It needs to be durable and have GPS tracking. Any recommendations?
Hey bryan222, good timing on this question! For an 8-year-old walking to school, I’d honestly look at the Gabb Phone or Bark Phone — they’re designed exactly for this, no social media rabbit holes, just calls/texts and GPS built in.
If you want something even simpler and more durable, a Troomi or even a basic kids smartwatch with GPS (like the Garmin Bounce or Cosmo JrTrack) might be all you actually need at that age. 
The watch option is honestly underrated — harder to lose, no “mom can I download TikTok” conversations, and the GPS works great for that school commute scenario.