We are in an era where smartphones play a major role in parenting. A study indicates that 43% of parents admit they cannot comprehend how child-rearing was accomplished before the widespread use of smartphones. The research further elucidates that parents frequently utilize smartphones to shop for their children, seek advice, and say that it is the single most useful tool for parenting. Parents access their phones approximately 77 times per week for advice, and 61% consider it crucial in raising their offspring. This study, conducted in the UK in partnership with Three UK, gathered responses from a thousand parents of children aged six and under.

The study found additional interesting data trends. As a side effect of their increased use of smartphones, 34% of parents said they had to increase their data limits due to excessive phone use, with most exceeding their limit by an additional five gigabytes per month. The Head of Marketing at Three UK, Aislinn O'Connor, commented on the results, highlighting the profound role smartphones play in people's lives, particularly after having a child. She explains that smartphones serve as an essential addition to the family, executing roles like entertainer, doctor, connector, and many more in daily life.

Alongside the universal parental concerns, users' data is being gobbled up largely by downloading and streaming content for their children. Around 36% of parents in the study reported that one of the largest consumers of their data is their children’s online activities, with 12 hours per week devoted on an average to streaming content. Parents were also asked about their primary uses for their devices, and the results showed that 67% use them for photography, 62% for sending WhatsApp messages, and 60% keep an eye on the weather with them.

In addition to conducting the study, Three UK collaborated with Professor Green, a musician and father, emphasizing the importance of staying connected through smartphones for new parents. He expressed his appreciation for smartphones, referring to them as a "second or third pair of hands", due to their potent ability to provide instant information, advice, and a support network whenever required.

He emphasized the indispensable role smartphones play in the lives of new parents. Professor Green asserted that the conventional usage of smartphones, which one might have taken for granted previously, suddenly manifests as a blessing after becoming a parent, underscoring the imperative need to keep people who need to stay connected, such as new parents, connected indeed.