How Young is Too Young?

     A recent study suggests that most children are being given their first cellphones at the ripe age of 6 years old.  While some people may not find this surprising, one would hope that this at least concerns the general population a little bit.  Cell phones are an incredible way for parents to keep in contact with their children as they begin participating in after school activities and they can even support powerful tracking tools that take advantage of GPS maps, but do these benefits out-weight the damage high-tech smartphones can have on a young child's mind?
    Smartphones are now a mecca for computer development, between the advancements in speed and power, to the ever growing number of apps and games that are available to users often for no more than 99 cents.  Equipped with so many tools to keep us "entertained" and distracted from the non-digital world, it seems parents are now falling back on cell phones to satisfy the expeditious minds of their young children and this could result in seriously unintended consequences.  With a parents credit card tied to a little green "buy now" button and endless content on the internet, young children are now capable of tapping into the power of smartphones that was originally intended for adult members of society, and unlike members of the older community who tend to be impatient with newer complex technologies, young children know that they can explore a smartphone endlessly until they find satisfaction for their curiosity.
     The average computer/cellphone user age is continuously decreasing and although parental tools are available to help prevent children from accessing content that may be unsuitable for them, there is still a larger issue at hand.  Rather than preparing children for a world in which they appreciate nature and imagination and respect the value of technology as a tool, young children are being trained to spend their free time constantly distracted by artificial entertainment so that they don't bother daddy because he's busy working hard to pay for the 200 dollar a month cellphone bill. Gone are the days of playing catch with dad in the back yard because the app store is trying harder to engage and challenge children than parents are.  Obviously many parents are an exception to this trend but it's getting harder and harder to predict what children will be like in 10-15 years.  How long will it be before children are raised by their devices and the only responsibility parents have to their 6-year-olds is to provide the paycheck and the wireless data contract?  It may sound pessimistic but without a negative point-of-view, how will we know when we've just gone too far.