Garmin Bounce™, Kids Smartwatch, Two-Way Text and Voice Messaging, Location Tracking, Black Camo

Perfect for children
This has been a great investment for our family. It allows our 7 year old to stay connected to us but without a cell phone or Apple Watch! We really like being able to track her when she’s at camp but also send her messages if she needs us or we want to make sure she’s okay. Battery life has been exceptional, I know there were some reviews that said it wasn’t good but when we charge it at night it’s still around 70%. My daughter picked up how to use it quickly and had no issues learning the games, audio messages and texting. It’s extremely durable, my daughter wears it in the pool, on hikes and when showering and it has really held up! I would definitely recommend.

Good watch for kids with minimal communication capabilities
Our kid is 7 y.o. and we bought that for her, mainly for three reasons:1. To be able to track her location when she is at school or on a field trips2. Stay connected and give her means to communicate with us on her own when one of us parents is not around (i.e. on a business trip out of town)3. To have a communication device for emergencies, when she needs our helpWe were choosing between different options, but stopped on Garmin, mainly because both of us already are using Garmin watches and other devices.Overall, we are happy with this purchase, however there are some caveats and things that I wish would be done differently.First of all, let’s see how goals above are achieved:1. Location tracking: no issues here, Garmin is true leader in GPS systems for a reason. We found location tracking to be accurate and fast-responding enough. There is a feature that allows you to establish a geo-boundaries (e.g. school or neighborhood) and get notified with live tracking each time when kid leaves it.2. Stay connected with family: In general it’s achieved, but with some caveats:- Kid can send voice messages (short voice recordings) or preset texts. You cannot type custom text from watches which maybe ok for 7-8 y.o., but probably won’t be sufficient for older kids- all the communications work via Garmin Jr app. First, that is not convenient because I don’t want another message app. I would prefer it was using at least Garmin Messenger, that I’m already use for InReach (I’m often outdoors with no cell coverage and staying connected with my wife). Second that it requires other family members (e.g. grandparents) to install the app and register to communicate with kid.3. Emergency communications: In general, it’s better than nothing (and much more than we had when were kids). However, communications require app, meaning that you won’t get kid’s texts if you have cell coverage with no good LTE/5G.Other noticeable features:1. Battery lasts for 2 days. Builds a good habit to be responsible and recharge her device. The charging time is a couple of hours and could be better2. There is a “School restrictions” mode that will block most of the features on watch to help kid not be distracted. Which is great, with one huge caveat: it will block messages, including emergency. So, e.g. in case of earthquake and evacuation, kid will not be able to reach out to us until end of school time. That’s the reason why we don’t use it.3. The screen is big enough, bright and easy to use4. There are some games and additional features but not too much, enough for a kid5. We liked that there is no full internet access or uncontrolled communications with random people (all contacts must be set by parents through the app).6. Kid likes the watch and likes to use them. She also started to track her activities (e.g. hiking, bicycling and etc.) and even joining the family steps competition. I think it’s a good help to build healthy life habits7. The communication plan (which is required for messages) costs $99 for a year, which is lower than competitors (but also provides less capabilities – only voice and preset text messages)8. The watch uses its own Garmin Jr. app for everything which leaves a feeling of some disconnect from the rest of Garmin infrastructure. I would love to see kids account in Connect and use Garmin Messenger instead of Garmin Jr.9. We installed a protective screen on the watch to protect from scratches (hence bubbles on the photo)Overall, if you are ok with what mentioned above, I think it’s a good watch. But I can see that in the next couple of years it might require an upgrade or some alternative.

Major issues
When these watches are working they are wonderful. But more often they are causing me issues. We got two for our 5 and 7-year-old for Christmas. Right off the bat opening them one (lilac) would not even turn on and had to be exchange for a new one. After getting the new one it was working great and randomly the watches switched profiles so one kids credentials went on the other and they had to swap their watches out (they are different colors) for them to be the right ones. The following day the original one (green) we bought that was working fine Christmas Day completely stopped working and just had a blank screen. I’ve been trying to factory reset them and they just won’t reset. I am very upset and disappointed this has been a huge waste of time a big inconvenience and a sad situation for my children who were really looking forward to them.Also the app is a pain in the rear. Adding contacts is impossible and finding support videos is slim to none! I followed directions in the manual to a T (which I had to download to my phone…. annoying) and had no success!

Okay but has some bugs to work out
Bought for my son to communicate when he was at a sleepover. I had a heart attack when I checked on him at midnight and it said he was across town. Sometimes the alarm will go off that he left school, but he didn’t. Limited texting abilities for him, but he does love the features.

This product is ONLY suitable for use in the USA. It has a US SIM in it which doesn’t work on Australian networks. The watch will only work when it is connected to a WiFi or Bluetooth connection, this defeats the purpose of your child being able to contact you when they are out. I’ve been advised to return the watch and purchase one through Garmin Australia.

En la descripción del producto señala que la batería dura 2 días, esto es falso. Mi hija se coloca el reloj a las 6 am y a las 3 pm ya está la batería agotada, estoy muy inconforme y quiero devolverlo, por que está pasando esto ???? Es defecto del producto ????