Best "Parental Controls" router features?

[Nerva]

I'm the tech guru in a household with 3 kids, and I'm curious what the best options these days are for routers and firmware for controlling how and when kids can access wifi -- I may be buying a new wifi router in the near future. The two big things I want to control are:

1) Easily being able to "flip a [router software] switch" and cutting off all the devices for a particular child. Currently, I do this in a clumsy way by keeping a list handy of MAC addresses for the devices each kid has, and if they need to lose their privileges, I go into the "filter" settings and put the appropriate devices into the list and click "deny". But, my girlfriend can't really do that, and But, as I said, we have three kids, so I would much prefer a setup where I can flip a setting that says "John's devices -- denied" or "Katie's devices -- allowed".

2) Use those same lists of MAC addresses to deny access for the kids on schoolnights after a certain hour. My current router only lets me assign particular IP addresses to "schedules", but I would perfer to just let IP addresses be dynamically assigned rather than specify them myself.

I'm currently considering the Netgear R7800, so I am curious about its parental controls in particular.

 

[thiggins]

When someone asks about "parental controls" they are usually looking at web filtering. In general, there is no product that is great at this.

Your focus is general internet access. I think you'll find the apps associated with some of the routers make the job easier. You set up accounts, assign devices to the account and can then control access.

Look at the NETGEAR Genie and Linksys Smart Wi-Fi apps. The newer multi-AP / "mesh" products like eero and Luma also have this sort of internet on/off control, but don't yet have schedules.

 

[RMerlin]

Asus's Parental Control allows you to establish time schedules during which specific clients (defined by their MACs) can be allowed/denied Internet access. Each client's entry can be enabled/disabled through a checkbox.

 

[Nerva]

When it comes to true "parental controls" (blocking inappropriate content), do any of you have opinions on which router manufacturer is the best?

 

[abailey]

Usually when your talking a router that can effectively deploy web filtering you are talking more complicated and more expensive than your usual consumer products. I use Untangle for filtering at my house and it works well, but it is best deployed by someone who is very familiar with routers. I have also used a Zyxel USG40 and it worked well. Both the Zyxel and the Untangle have a yearly cost. Another product I have not used is the Circle by Disney. It may be something for you to look into.

 

[sfx2000]

When someone asks about "parental controls" they are usually looking at web filtering. In general, there is no product that is great at this.

Your focus is general internet access. I think you'll find the apps associated with some of the routers make the job easier. You set up accounts, assign devices to the account and can then control access.

Look at the NETGEAR Genie and Linksys Smart Wi-Fi apps. The newer multi-AP / "mesh" products like eero and Luma also have this sort of internet on/off control, but don't yet have schedules.

Many of the consumer Router/AP's do offer some level of control, and this can be useful when combined with items like Google Safe Search and OpenDNS's offerings - additionally there are tools like the Disney Circle (reviewed on the main site) that can also help.

Problem is that those policy updates for controls need to be continuously updated, otherwise they are ineffective, which generally support's Tim's statement above...

Technology, by itself, is a poor babysitter -I've gone on record here several times on this topic (it's a common ask)... As a parent, one has to stay involved and engaged - kids are smart, they'll figure ways around controls, and it is really up to the parents to see this and apply corrections outside of the technology domain.

Tools that can build policies around access, and do it in layers - and when used properly, they can reinforce good parenting skills when introducing kids to responsible use of the internet...

 

[Nerva]

Look at the NETGEAR Genie and Linksys Smart Wi-Fi apps.

I read through the documentation for NETGEAR's Genie software, and I do like both the level of customization and the fact I can remotely control it from apps on my phone or tablet. From taking a quick look at the webpage for Linksys Smart Wifi, it looks comparable. Are those the two best options out there, or are there other strong competitors?

kids are smart, they'll figure ways around controls

Yes, that's why my original question did not focus on content-blocking... I know that's fighting a losing battle, although as long as I'm setting up various restrictions and schedules, I figure I might as well throw in content-blocking. But my priority is having flexibility in locking out devices entirely, based on time-of-day, or to take devices away as punishment.

Do any of the router manufacturers let you deny a device (or a group of devices with the same owner) for some length of time -- i.e. take away their wifi for an hour as punishment, etc?

 

[System Error Message]

i find openDNS has good parental controls as it lets you select what you want to block. There is no good default product as the best ones require you to set it up yourself. I once tried doing that with ubiquiti using squid but the process seemed too complex for me as you need squid3, squidguard and some other things, updating the blocklist with an external host and setting up scripts and such. Pretty complex so my suggestion would be to use a linux machine and set it up yourself if you want the best parental control.

Otherwise theres a long list of products and ISP services that offer them. They may not be great but at least you have options so you have to look for one that best suites your needs.

Sure kids are smart with bypassing parental controls so you gotta be smarter with tech so they cant get around it, like using radius as that can give you a schedule control for accounts and can be used with wifi.

 

[sfx2000]

Yes, that's why my original question did not focus on content-blocking... I know that's fighting a losing battle, although as long as I'm setting up various restrictions and schedules, I figure I might as well throw in content-blocking. But my priority is having flexibility in locking out devices entirely, based on time-of-day, or to take devices away as punishment.

Do any of the router manufacturers let you deny a device (or a group of devices with the same owner) for some length of time -- i.e. take away their wifi for an hour as punishment, etc?

Again this has come up time and time again - depends on the kids - but one of the better approaches that I have seen shared is "the box" - small cardbox box that the phones/tablets go into during homework time and after bedtime - along with keeping consoles and computers in the home's public areas, rather than letting kids keep them in the bedrooms.

It's a low maintenance approach and keeps kids engaged with the family... again, it really comes down to the particular person and family - some kids are actually pretty well behaved, whereas others do need some more help with supervision.

I was fairly fortunate with my son, and we introduced him to computing fairly early on, and internet when I felt he was "ready" - which at the time was middle school... but I've had friends that had serious problems, esp. with online gaming and pron - so I do understand the challenges that parents face.

Best of luck!