If your family is anything like mine, there is one thing you have done exceedingly well during quarantine: defaulted to your screens whenever you’re bored. I’ve tried not to stress too much about it…after all, we’re in the middle of a global pandemic and so many of us are just trying to get by. But on a beautiful summer day when we were all choosing our screens instead of spending time outside, I realized I needed some help with keeping us all more accountable (and I’m sure I’m not alone!?)
Since we’re not doing a great job self-monitoring our screentime, I was excited to learn about Comcast’s Xfinity Internet and xFi parental control features. Xfinity xFi lets you manage your home WiFi network, know who’s online, troubleshoot issues and [drumroll] manage family members’ online experiences with features like Pause and Parental Controls with the Xfintiy xFi app.
According to Comcast, there has been a staggering spike in online usage since the start of the pandemic: a 57 percent increase in people are logging onto their digital dashboard xFiI daily. With xFi, you have visibility and control over one of the most important technologies in your life – your home WiFi. Here are some cool features they offer:
Press Pause
Pausing WiFi is the most popular feature on xFi. It is a great way to get family members to put down their devices and focus on each other. There has been a 75 percent increase in the number of times parents are hitting pause on their WiFi network using xFi since the COVID pandemic. With everyone at home at all hours, the pause button has been a great feature to help parents enforce screen time rules throughout the day.
Age-appropriate Filters
The more time kids spend online, the better the chances they have of running into inappropriate material. The good news is xFi has a setting that filters web content while browsing and searching on devices. There has been a 43 percent increase in parents activating this setting on xFi for their kiddos which means parents are doing something right!
Increasing or Decreasing Time Spent Online
Do you want to set a limit on your child’s device that they can spend two hours online? You can make adjustments to screen time via the xFi Active Time Alert feature. The median active time alert set on weekdays has gone up from 3 hours to 4 hours a day during the COVID pandemic.
Some Interesting Facts!
- The average household is putting in an extra workday’s worth of viewing each week – watching 8+ hours more per week than they were in early March, going from approximately 57 hours a week per household to 66 hours.
- COVID-19 is blurring weekday and weekend viewing levels and habits; Monday is a more popular viewing day than Saturday.
- Comcast has also seen a 35% increase in streaming and web video consumption, across our entire broadband network, in addition to traditional TV viewership increases.
While families continue to work, play and learn from home, Comcast wants to help their customers transform their “screen time rules” especially as kids are out of school over the summertime. For additional information about how to keep your kids on a schedule using the tools the Xfinity xFi provides, be sure to check-out Five Tips for Maximizing Your Home Network at Home.
In partnership with Mile High Mamas.
Author: Amber Johnson
Amber is the founder and editor of Mile High Mamas, travel writer and former columnist for The Denver Post. She is a passionate community builder and loves the outdoors. She has two awesome teens and is happily married to a man obsessed with growing The Great Pumpkin.
