Hands-on with mobiles2go's i-Kids phone

This might look like a kitchen appliance you'd use to test the temperature of pies, but it's actually a mobile phone designed for children. Crave is still a little sceptical of small children running around with mobiles beaming radiation into their squidgy little brains, but this handset does seem rather useful.

The very titchy mobiles2go i-Kids phone not only acts as a basic mobile phone that can be pre-programmed with four numbers, it also lets you locate your child via a built-in GPS receiver. The system is actually quite impressive and gives you access to some very useful tools.

For example, using the i-Kids Web site, not only can you locate your child to within 20 metres but you can also setup three safety zones with a radius of between 250m and 6km. A safety zone is essentially an area that you trust your child will be safe in -- if your child leaves that area, you're notified.

Notifications can be sent directly to your mobile phone via text message, and you can access more detailed information using the Web site. Overall we think this is a good way of keeping an eye on kids. Our only niggle is that the aerial, which is shaped like a pair of a horns, might conceivably hurt a child if they fell on it, but its curves make that rather unlikely.

The i-Kids phone is currently available for £100, not including £15.75 per month tariff charges (plus calls), from the mobiles2go Web site. While we were out at CeBIT we saw that O2 Germany had it on its portfolio, so it's likely we'll see it sold through a network here in the UK soon. -AL