Galaxy watch 7 for kids setup problems

[2POLOS]

I bought a galaxy watch 7 lte for my son, but during the setup process, I never get the option "Start setup for your child". After I  confirm the numbers both on my phone and the watch, I accept the mandatory  software licence, and then the setup process jumps straight into seting it up with my google account and continues the setup for me as the main user. 

My phone is a galaxy s24+ with Android 14 and UI One 6.1. 

The Wear app version is 2.2.61 updated in feb 2025.

#GalaxyWatch7

[Lucky707]

Unfortunately they mislead all through their newsletter and Youtube video! The feature is only available in US!!

I reached out to Samsung Australia, here's there response on email.

I suggest all to write an email to samsung support and present your disappointment at this discovery and ask for a full refund:

"Thank you for contacting Samsung Electronics Australia.

Thank you for reaching out and for taking the time to share the issue you've encountered while trying to set up the device for a child. We understand how important it is to get this working properly, and we appreciate your patience and persistence.

 

Based on the latest information available, Samsung has partnered with Google to introduce a new kid-friendly Wear OS experience called “Galaxy Watch for Kids.” At this time, this feature has been announced exclusively for the Galaxy Watch7 LTE model and is currently only available in the United States.

 

We regret to inform you that, at this time, there is no official confirmation regarding whether this kid-friendly feature will be made available for other Galaxy Watch models or expanded to additional regions, including Australia.

 

Should there be any future updates regarding the availability of this feature in Australia, we’ll be sure to share them through our official channels, such as the Samsung Australia website. In the meantime, if there’s anything else we can assist you with, please don’t hesitate to let us know."

[Lucky707 · Accepted solution]

Unfortunately they mislead all through their newsletter and Youtube video! The feature is only available in US!!

I reached out to Samsung Australia, here's there response on email.

I suggest all to write an email to Samsung support and present your disappointment at this discovery and ask for a full refund:

"Thank you for contacting Samsung Electronics Australia.

Thank you for reaching out and for taking the time to share the issue you've encountered while trying to set up the device for a child. We understand how important it is to get this working properly, and we appreciate your patience and persistence.

 

Based on the latest information available, Samsung has partnered with Google to introduce a new kid-friendly Wear OS experience called “Galaxy Watch for Kids.” At this time, this feature has been announced exclusively for the Galaxy Watch7 LTE model and is currently only available in the United States.

 

We regret to inform you that, at this time, there is no official confirmation regarding whether this kid-friendly feature will be made available for other Galaxy Watch models or expanded to additional regions, including Australia.

 

Should there be any future updates regarding the availability of this feature in Australia, we’ll be sure to share them through our official channels, such as the Samsung Australia website. In the meantime, if there’s anything else we can assist you with, please don’t hesitate to let us know."

[MandyW_19]

Thanks for the update!

So frustrating this is not explicit on the website - I wasted many many hours trying to figure it out.

Also I hate when they do this based on location - the technology is the same so why limit it to a specific country!?

[2POLOS]

Thank you for sharing @Lucky707. Despite the huge disappointment (and anger at Samsung) for not making this clear from the beginning saving us time, energy and frustration, it is good to finally get an official answer that closes this issue. 

[Basilisk3]

Thanks for the update I share your frustration.

I have found an approach/workaround. It’s not the ideal setup, but it’s working well for my daughter. It won’t suit everyone, and it’s not as streamlined or has the guardrails of the official kids' option:

The watch is added to my account but paired with an old phone that’s used solely for this purpose. I registered a regular eSIM to the watch, rather than one specifically for smartwatches. It has its own number and can make and receive calls, though SMS doesn’t work. My number and my wife’s are saved as favourites so she can call us easily.
Tracking her is simple via Google Find My, touch wood it’s never failed so far.

For messaging, I set up WhatsApp on the dedicated phone using the watch’s phone number then installed on the watch. I verified it by answering a WhatsApp call on the watch. My wife and I are the only contacts, so she can send and receive messages, including voice notes, directly from the watch.

The watch works fine for weeks without being connected to its paired phone. Occasionally, I just need to power on the phone to update WhatsApp.

The battery is lasting a day but Bluetooth, always on display, health tracking sensors are all turned off. Wifi, location, lte are always on. 

[Lucky707]

I used the exact same method but there are problems :

1. Battery only lasts half a day for the 40mm version which is painful, unless i turn off almost everything.

2. Although I have created and activated school mode, its easily possible for kids to turn it off themselves.

Next I am going to try activating parental controls on the watch via Google family link, will report back to the group, how it goes. 

[Basilisk3]

• How do you create and activate a school mode?

We have the 40mm too, battery normally get critical around 12hrs. I think for my daughter the novelty of a smart watch soon wore off, she now only uses it to contact us. It's the main problem with these lte/wear os watches really, hopefully advancements in battery tech and softwares impove things in the future. 

[DMaricic]

Don't feel too bad, I can confirm that this feature doesn't work for us in the US either! I've spent 3 hours on the phone with Verizon, their response is the watch must be broken and want to send me a new one. Like several of you, I'm also a computer tech and have tried many workarounds including using separat phones. The Setup for a child option never appears.