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HOME PHONE FOR KIDS IN AUSTRALIA

The landline is gone. The smartphone is too much. Here is what Australian families are choosing instead.

Updated April 2026 Australian Options No Sponsored Rankings Honest Verdicts

The Gap Nobody Talks About

THE LANDLINE IS GONE. THE SMARTPHONE IS TOO MUCH. NOW WHAT?

A generation ago, every Australian home had a landline. Kids called friends on it. Grandparents called to check in. It sat in the kitchen or hallway, belonged to everyone, and served its purpose without incident.

The NBN rollout and the rise of mobile phones changed all of that. By 2026, fewer than 30% of Australian households have an active landline. Most families cancelled theirs years ago. The family phone is gone — and nothing has replaced it for children.

What fills the gap is usually a smartphone, handed to a primary schooler who does not need one. The logic is understandable: "They need to be able to call home, so we got them a phone." But that phone comes with an app store, a browser, a camera, social media capability, and an engagement algorithm designed to maximise the time your child spends on it.

A kids' WiFi home phone fills the gap the right way. It is a phone. Just a phone. Connected to your home WiFi, with a parent-managed contact list, no screen, no internet, no SIM. The house phone is back — and this time it belongs to your kid.

HOME

Why a Dedicated Kids' Home Phone Works

FIVE REASONS AUSTRALIAN PARENTS ARE CHOOSING THIS

Zero Internet Risk

No browser. No app store. No social media. No way to access the internet at all. A WiFi home phone is connected to your network but the device itself has no internet capability.

Approved Contacts Only

You control who your child can call and receive calls from. The parent portal lets you add and remove contacts. Strangers cannot call in.

No Monthly Plan

No SIM, no mobile plan, no ongoing subscription. Connects over your existing home WiFi. One purchase, done.

Builds Real Conversation

Phone calls build communication skills that texting and messaging do not. Your child learns to start and end a conversation, listen, take turns. Skills that matter.

Theirs, Not Shared

A phone that belongs to your child — in their room, with their contacts — builds a sense of responsibility and ownership without the risks of a personal smartphone.

Right for Ages 5–12

Appropriate from the moment a child is old enough to use a phone, right through primary school. Not too young. Not too much.

The Yaps Option

THE KIDS' HOME PHONE BUILT FOR AUSTRALIA

Recommended

YAPS — WIFI HOME PHONE FOR KIDS

What it is: A retro handset WiFi phone designed specifically for children aged 5–12. Connects to your home WiFi. No SIM card. No screen on the device. Parent portal for managing contacts. $149 AUD, one-time purchase.

Who can your child call? Only the contacts you approve — mum, dad, grandma, a family friend. You add them in the portal. Your child scrolls through the list on the handset and dials. No unknown numbers can call in.

What it does not do: Internet access, texting, video calls, app downloads, web browsing. None of those things. It makes and receives voice calls. That is it.

Best for: Any child aged 5–12 who needs to be able to call home — without the risk of a smartphone. The simplest, safest kids' home phone in Australia.

“The house phone is back. This time it belongs to your kid.”
Yaps — Raise the kind of kid who still calls.
OTHER OPTIONS

Other Options Worth Knowing

IF YAPS IS NOT THE RIGHT FIT

Traditional Landline Option

NBN HOME PHONE (VOIP)

How it works: If you have an NBN connection with phone capability (many plans include this), you can connect a standard corded handset. Your child uses it to call any number.

Limitation: No parental controls on who can call in. Your child can also call any number they look up. The contact list is the entire phonebook, not a parent-approved short list. Requires an NBN phone-capable plan.

Best for: Families who already have an NBN phone plan and want a basic home calling option without the parent-control features of Yaps.

Kids GPS Watch Option

SPACETALK ADVENTURER

How it works: Wrist-worn. Works on mobile data as well as WiFi. GPS location. Calling to approved contacts. School mode.

Limitation: Not a home phone — it is a wearable. Has a screen. Requires ongoing monthly subscription. Not the same use case as a home phone.

Best for: Families who need location tracking as well as calling, and whose child travels independently.

Not What You Think It Is

ECHO DOT / SMART SPEAKER

Some parents try using Amazon Echo or Google Nest as a pseudo-home phone for children. The calling feature can reach approved contacts. But smart speakers are internet-connected devices with voice assistants — they can answer almost any question your child asks, play any content, and connect to internet services. Not a safe substitute for a purpose-built kids' home phone.

FOR

Who Yaps Is For

THE FAMILIES WHO GET THE MOST OUT OF A KIDS' HOME PHONE

Parents who have disconnected their landline and want to give their children a way to call home that is safer than a smartphone.

Parents who are holding the line on smartphones and want a genuine alternative that satisfies the "I want a phone" request without the risks that come with it.

Grandparents and extended family who want a direct line to their grandchildren — a number they can call, a phone their grandchild actually answers.

Wait Mate families — the growing movement of Australian parents who have agreed collectively to delay smartphones until high school. Yaps is the phone that bridges the gap.

Parents with children aged 5–12 who want their child to develop phone communication skills before they enter the smartphone world — so when that day comes, they know how to have a real conversation.

Join the Waitlist

READY TO TRY YAPS?

The first WiFi home phone built for Australian families.

Join the Waitlist

Common Questions

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

A kids' home phone is a dedicated calling device that works over your home WiFi — no SIM card, no mobile plan, no internet access. It lets your child call approved contacts from home. Yaps is the most purpose-built kids' home phone available in Australia, with a parent portal for contact management and a retro handset design kids love.
Most Australian households have disconnected their traditional landlines — the NBN rollout and mobile phone adoption means fewer than 30% of homes still have an active landline. But the idea of a home phone specifically for children is experiencing a revival, driven by parents who want their kids to be reachable at home without giving them a smartphone.
A dedicated kids' home phone solves a specific problem: your child needs to be able to call you (and grandma, and close family) from home, without any of the internet risk that comes with a smartphone. It is simpler than adding your child to the family landline plan, and far safer than giving them a mobile. It is also something they feel ownership of — their phone, in their room.
A WiFi kids' home phone connects to your home internet just like a smart TV or laptop. The parent sets up approved contacts through a simple web portal. The child picks up the handset and calls any contact on their list. There is no SIM card, no mobile data plan, and no internet access on the device itself.
Yaps is a home phone — specifically, a WiFi home phone designed for children. It does not have a SIM card and cannot be used outside the home on mobile data. It is designed for home calling: your child calls mum, dad, grandma, or a family friend from their bedroom, the kitchen, or anywhere in the house with WiFi coverage.

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HOW YAPS WORKS

No screen. No internet. No SIM. Here is exactly how Yaps lets your child call home safely.

THE FULL AGE-BY-AGE GUIDE

From age 5 to 16 — the right device for every stage of your child's development.
YAPS

THE FIRST PHONE
THEY WILL ACTUALLY USE.

No screen. No internet. No app store. Just voice calls to people you trust — over your home WiFi.

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