So my dad won't let me get a cellphone.

Yeah, I know, stupid problem. but really, our power company sucks and sometimes just shut off out power. So the phones out, and I can't call my dad to tell him.

that's one reason, but I need more. He doesn't think I'm irresponsible, he just thinks I'll use it for too much "social purposes". If I got over the texting or minutes, I'll give him the amount of money it's above what it's supposed to be.

So all I'm asking....how did you convince your parents to get you a cellphone? btw, I'm a teenager, if that helps.

teenager can mean 13... or 19. best to be more specific?

perhaps talk about a pre-paid cell?

because all the other kids have one!

I'd say just get an unlimited plan for your phone family. My family uses Sprint and for five people who have cellphones, it's actually very affordable as long as you don't get some crazy internet phone thing. Start simple. Plus with unlimited plans you can text as much as you want, though I think calls are still limited to a certain amount of time if you call before 9. I know after 9 all of my calls are free.

Just bring up the situation about the power outage? And maybe add that you'd like one just in case any other emergency situation came up. I mean, you never know when something's going to happen where you'll need emergency contact.

I am not at all a cellphone person, but when I went off to college my parents gave me a prepaid cellphone. (aka: a terrorist cellphone XD) The reason they gave me it was for emergency reasons, and to tell them if I plan on going somewhere. Try and convince your parents that a cellphone would be a comforting item to have for such reasons.

Why not just offer to pay for the phone yourself?

First, why do you need texting if the point is to just be able to contact people when you need to? Texting is an extra expense and is not necessary. Second, you made it sound like you only want one for emergency purposes, not for social purposes, so what makes you think you would go over those minutes? If you're just using it on a need/emergency basis, you would never go over.

You should pay for it yourself if you really want one. I also agree with your father, I think you want one for social purposes, not for the emergency scenario your putting emphasis on to get one.

I take the bus, so it was pretty damn crucial when I got a cell phone.

• Phoning home when I worked late to let my mom know I was on my way home.
• Phoning my ride to see where/when they were picking me up.
• Phoning a friend if I was meeting them somewhere and needed to get a hold of them on the road.
• Texting the bus company for bus times when there wasn't a schedule on the bus stop.
• Don't always have to worry about carrying a quarter with you and having access to a payphone - and being totally fucked if you didn't.
• The obvious one of being able to phone someone in an emergency situation. Sometimes I even would phone home if I was out at night and there was a shifty guy walking behind me, or similar. Just in case.

I find it annoying to be out of contact with people. :P -hugs cell phone- What if I was out all day and someone - anyone - needed to get a hold of me? :S

If he's concerned about you going over on minutes or texts, prepaid cellphones are a great option since there's really no way to go over.

And if you're going with the "What if there's an emergency!?" scenario when talking to him about it....well, you don't need texts or anything extra like that. Hell, tell him you don't need texting :D

Just let it go. You don't need one. I have one and hate it. Why have it if all it's there for, is to ring and cause you to give it to your teachers and or boss who don't give it back 'till your parents come in get it for you and then scold you 'bout when is the 'proper' time to have it ring.

Amen! One and only reason!

I'd say ask him about a prepaid, and only able to top it up once a month or so. That way if you go over your limit, thats it, no extra bills.

The main reason I wanted one was for emergencies, if you are out on your own and something goes wrong, like you lose your money, get stuck somewhere, or even get lost they can be very helpful =3

:x That's why you turn it off during school.

Cell phones are important for lots of things. If you're out somewhere and get in trouble (a car breaks down, you're stuck without a ride home, you need to go home earlier than expected, etc.) you can use it to call someone else and solve the issue that way... or if you're supposed to meet someone and they're not there yet... that's when cell phones are the most useful.

Start off with a prepaid plan, that way it's impossible to go over your limit. Have a limit on how much you receive at a time, and learn how to manage your minutes wisely. When you prove that you can do that, then I think you should be able to see how you do without the prepaid plan... or maybe he can buy a plan with unlimited texting or a family plan with rollover minutes or something like that. Just be careful and cautious about what you do with the cell phone... don't text too much, and only call people when it's necessary.

So basically... talk to your dad and ask him for a prepaid plan to start out with.

If you don't drive yet why not ask him if you can get one once you start driving? I first got one back in the day in middle school. I honestly didn't use it much except for my parents to contact me since not many people my age had one. It was nice though because I could call and say if I was running late or something or if I needed to stay after school for help. Not waiting for the school phone was awesome! But people always asked to borrow it. I got prepaid so it was easy to say no. Prepaid is good because there's no contract or anything. My texting is essentially free, my minutes just cost a slight bit more when I buy them. I don't even text that much anymore. Gush does make a good point. My ex boyfriend would always call my cell in the middle of the night when he was drunk. Ugh. Or stupid forward texts. Bleh. You could always get a functioning cell phone with no minutes/plan/whatever to use just for emergencies. A disabled phone can still call 911! To answer your question though, I didn't have to try too hard to get my parents to get me one. I just asked and said I'd help with buying minutes.

I just now convinced my dad to put me on his plan after he found out he's going to have to go to Duke University for his Heart Transplant. I've been living in a dorm since September with only Skype to use to communicate. I had one of those Pre-paid phones for a few months, but it was getting too expensive for me and my now-ex thought it was fun to run up my minutes and not help me at all when buying more even though he's the one that used a majority of them up.

I would say search around for the cheapest pre-paid service and show that you can use that responsibly first. That way your dad can see that you will use it for good purposes.