We've tried like 5 different ones and I keep abandoning them because they either feel too invasive or they're annoying to manage. Currently using built-in Screen Time but it feels weak. What are dads actually using that balances monitoring without feeling dystopian? Open Parental Control suggestions below - looking for something that works for a 10 and 13yo.
Tried Bark, Life360, and three others. Every single one felt like overkill until we just... started asking our kids about what they're watching. Radical concept: they'll actually tell you if you ask without being weird about it.
The "too invasive" feeling is legit though. If your kid feels like they're under surveillance, they just get sneakier. The conversation about trust is harder but actually works better.
Screen Time is weak but honest question - what's it weak FOR? If you're just trying to enforce bedtime limits, it actually does that fine. If you're trying to see EVERYTHING they do, yeah that's creepy.
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We've settled on Apple's built-in stuff + actually talking to our kids about why the limits exist. The parental control app overload is real - you end up managing the system instead of parenting.
"Annoying to manage" is usually the death sentence for any parental control thing. If YOU'RE not gonna actually use it consistently, it's just a false sense of security.