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Help How do my kids buy apps in the UK?

premiump

Well-Known Member
Nov 15, 2009
175
19
UK
I have bought both my kids (13 & 10) a Nexus 7 each for Christmas.

I am reluctant to add my credit card details to their accounts. I know I can prevent apps being bought with a PIN, but I'd rather not add my CC at all.

Play Gift Cards? US-only it seems. Why haven't Google rolled this out around the world? This is a major barrier to app purchase. Similarly, why can we not "gift" credit to other people's accounts? How easy would that be to allow parents to add credit to their kids accounts?

Alternately, how do you do it? (UK specific please)

Pete
 
Do your children have smartphones?

I faced the same problem when giving an N7 to my niece. To get round it I created her a Google account (lying about her age!) then gave her my old S2 with a PAYG SIM. She can buy apps on the phone with payment taken from the SIM, then download them from the Play Store onto the N7. Every now and them I put some money on the SIM for more apps.
 
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Thanks for the replies guys, its much appreciated .. its also what I expected to be honest, there is no simple way to add credit to their google accounts.

Free apps are great, I have tested and used hundreds ... but the moment you want "ad-free", you have to pay!

No smartphones as yet, so this option is out.

Pre-paid debit cards is an option, but still a mess around. Surely, I can't be the only person asking these kind of questions?

My son is 13, and his bank account does have a debit card (that won't authorise if he hasn't the pennies in the account), I guess I could add that for him, topping it up periodically.

My daughter is trickier, shes doesn't even have a cashcard yet, so I'm not sure what to do.

Thx

Pete
 
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Any app you buy belongs to you on any device you own so I guess you could buy it on yours and then download it on theirs, through your account (log on and off each time to keep your account safe), maybe?

I have done this with books and apps on my phone and Nexus

When I first bought my own Nexus 7, I created my daughter an account and logged on, none of the apps I had previously purchased myself appeared in her account. The device couldn't see them.

cheers
 
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I meant for you to log on to Play with your account on their machines

Would that work? In my previous reply, I said I'd created my daughter an account on MY Nexus 7 ... when she logged in, MY apps were not visible to her. Surely this would be the same, regardless of whether the Nexus 7 is hers or mine?

I don't want my account on their tablets at all to be honest. :(
 
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