Case Study

Kids Cellular Watch & App system

Led UX design across the full ecosystem, from watch firmware to companion app, resulting in a commercially successful product that offered child safety and peace of mind for parents.

Role
Lead UX / Product Design, Owned end-to-end experience across watch and companion app

Team
Timex, firmware vendors, mobile app team, carrier partners Cross-functional collaboration across hardware, software, and business

Outcome
Shipped product to market, Generated significant commercial revenue, Defined UX foundation for a connected family wearable ecosystem

Overview

Timex created the FamilyConnect brand and introduced a cellular-enabled smartwatch designed for children, paired with a companion mobile app used by parents.

Product features included calling and messaging between parent and child, location visibility and check-ins, parent-controlled safety features such as school mode, and independence for children within a controlled environment. Rather than functioning as a standalone device, the watch and app operate as a connected system, where the parent configures and monitors the experience while the child interacts with a simplified device and interface.

Challenge

The solution needed to serve two very different users:

Parents

Simple, intuitive controls that build confidence and trust
Reliable location tracking and communication
Easy management of setup, contacts, and safety features

Children

Clear, simple interactions
Minimal steps for key actions
Promoting independence, not surveillance.
Engaging features like games and messaging

Additional constraints:

Small touchscreen interface (watch)
Cellular network dependency and activation complexity
Integration across multiple vendors and systems
Competitive pressure from existing kids’ tracking devices

Side note: Side note: To ground the design in real-world use, I tested it with my nephews, active boys, to make sure it lived up to Timex’s ‘Takes a licking and keeps on ticking’ legacy.

Design approach

I approached the work as a connected system rather than a standalone watch interface. The goal was to balance child independence with parent reassurance across every interaction.

Core principles

Keep interactions fast and easy for kids
Move complexity into the parent app
Design check-ins as reassurance, not surveillance
Make system states and restrictions obvious

FamilyConnect watch and companion app screens

Process

Define the ecosystem
Mapped how the watch and parent app function as a unified system across key functions, pairing, adding contacts, messaging and notifications.

UX specification
Detailed flows for onboarding, QR code pairing, messaging, calling, school mode, and location check-ins

Edge cases
Defined UX for no service, failed pairing, timeouts, safe zones, updates, and feature announcements

On-wrist games for kids

Designed memory game modeled after classic Simon electronic game. Timex games (for kids to understand analog time), and others. Built in controls for parents to disable games during school mode.

Watchfaces

Numerous watchfaces (Animated, Digital and Analog) were developed with specification for clearly showing missed calls and messages.

Tasks & Rewards

A fun feature for parents to engage with kids, by offering them rewards for tasks completed. Prompts for new tasks and reminders to complete by a certain day/time.

Key design decisions

Parent as primary app user
Daily use, adding contacts, setting safe zones, reminders, settings

Watch as kid’s daily companion
Strive for making features fun (games, watch faces, calling, messaging, check-ins)

Safety is prioritized
Safety features like SOS, school mode, location tracking always clear and visible

Outcome

The FamilyConnect kids watch launched successfully and and received positive reviews. The work established a cohesive UX foundation across both the watch and companion app, enabling follow-on projects, including a senior-focused watch built on the same app and cloud ecosystem. The Timex UX team translated complex technical requirements into a product families could easily understand and trust.

For a quick video overview of this watch, check out Timex's promo video here .

Reflection

The overall experience came down to how the watch and app worked together. Paying attention to the details on each platform made the product feel reliable and easy to use.

Working with watch vendors in Asia, app and cloud teams (Smartcom), and T-Mobile was a great part of the process. Testing with kids was both insightful and fun, especially when building in features like games and messaging and seeing what actually held their attention.

One of the biggest personal learning moments was moving from Bluetooth (instant and local) to a cellular model, which introduced latency and other challenges. Designing around those constraints became a key part of making the experience work.

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