Kids below 13 who are not allowed to have Google accounts yet can still use their Android devices through Google Play Family Link. And while the parental controls are of course pretty handy with their “drastic limitations”, there are still some features that Google needs to fix for this one. The good news is that they have at least fixed one thing as you now have an “always allow” option for apps that the kids may need for their schoolwork without it counting against their allowed screen time.
One thing that parents can do on the Family Link platform is to set a time limit for all apps. But sometimes, there are important apps like calculator or learning platforms that the kids may need beyond their allowed screen time. Now there’s the “always allow” option that parents can choose for apps that will not eat into the “for entertainment” screen time that you have set during school days or even weekends.
But if you choose the “always allow” option, this doesn’t mean that the kid can still use the app during bedtime. The idea of a bedtime setting is so that children will not be able to use any app during those scheduled hours. Google Play Family Link has a lot of other parental control features although according to Android Police, there are still a lot of things that need to be fixed within the platform.
You will need to go app by app to fine-tune permissions as you cannot set limits or exemptions for groups of apps. The time limits also apply to all of the child’s devices that use Family Link so if they’re using Chromebook during school hours, it might also affect their playtime on tablets or phones. The new “always allow” option can somehow help with that but it will still be convenient to have a per device option.
The “always allow” option is now available for those using Google Play Family Link. We actually don’t know when it started showing up but at least it’s there now for a bit of convenience for both parents and children.
