Coming 9 November

The home phone is back.

Call the cuzzies in Kaikōura. Natter with Nana in
Napier. Phone Uncle Fred on the farm.
Or dial up a joke on demand.

One email when the shop opens on 9 November. No spam.

A girl lying upside down on the couch with her legs in the air, chatting on a Small Talk phone

Small Talk is a local family business on a mission to keep Kiwi kids connected to the people they love, without a screen in sight. All the best bits of having a phone, and none of the rest.

Sorted before the jug boils.

1

Plug it in

Runs on your home Wi-Fi and a power point.
No landline, no SIM, no technician. Easy as.

2

Customise your settings

From the Small Talk parent app, you choose exactly who they can ring and who can ring them, and when.

A boy curled up on the couch, laughing into a Small Talk phone
3

Ready to call

Pick up the phone, press a button to call a favourite contact, and they're away laughing.

You’re The Operator.

You choose who callsUsing the Small Talk app for parents, you create an approved Phone Book. Every contact phoning in and out needs your sign-off.
Phone HoursQuiet when you need it. We've even included Meal Mode, which gives you 30 minutes of quiet.
You see every callKnow who they're chatting to with one glance at the call log on the Small Talk app.
111 always dials outNothing is more important than the safety of your kids. With Small Talk they can dial 111 anytime, even outside Phone Hours.

*The phone needs to be plugged in and have a Wi-Fi connection.
The Small Talk parent app home screen, showing calling hours, Meal mode and the phone online

Independence for them, peace of mind for you.

Call your mates

*1, *2, *3Speed dials for your favourite people. *0 reads out your Phone Book.
*555Dial a Joke. Get ready to giggle (and groan).
*777Kiwi Quiz. Two new questions a day. Perfect for curious kids or a bit of friendly family competition.
*444Pick a Path. An adventure where they choose what happens at every fork in the road, and every decision takes the story somewhere new. Will they knock on the treehouse door or follow the butterfly?
*888Story Time. They answer three quick questions and a brand new story is made just for them. Same questions, never the same story.
*97Voicemail. Nana left you one. Checking messages is always free.

Plans as simple

Free

$0

Quick Yarn

$10 a month

Long Yarn

$19.99 a month

Calls between Small Talk phones
Unlimited, nationwide
Unlimited, nationwide
Unlimited, nationwide
Calls to NZ numbers
Not included
60 minutes a month. When they run out, Phone Tag keeps the chat going.†
Unlimited*
Calls from NZ numbers
Not included
Free
Free
Parent app
Included
Included
Included

*Unlimited means unlimited for everyday family chats. It's subject to our fair use policy.

On Quick Yarn and Long Yarn, calls into your Small Talk number are free and never use your minutes.

†Phone Tag: once the 60 minutes are used, your child can still ring out. The person they call hears a short message from us asking them to call back, then we hang up. Calls in are free, and lots of phone plans include unlimited calls, so the chat carries on using their minutes.

The Small Talk phone on a white table, its curly cord trailing over the edge

Get a phone.

The Small Talk phone on a wooden shelf beside a record player and a painted lampThe Small Talk phone on a white table with a paper crown, felt pens and a Small Talk drawingThe Small Talk handset lifted off its base, keypad showing, beside a Small Talk drawingThe Small Talk phone on a small stool beside an armchair, under a wall of kids' drawingsThe plain white Small Talk phone and its curly cordThe Small Talk handset held up by its curly cord, keypad showing, with a Small Talk sticker below the keysThe white Small Talk phone with stickers on it and its curly cord

The Small Talk phone.

A home phone for families. All you need is a power point and home Wi-Fi. No landline or SIM required.

$129one-off

In the box

  • Small Talk phone and base
  • White curly cord and power plug
  • A surprise sheet of stickers to customise your phone

Coloured curly cords coming soon!

On sale 9 November

Free shipping nationwide. Posted from Auckland.

Calls between Small Talk phones are free.
For calls to and from NZ numbers, see the plans.

Good questions.

What is Small Talk?

Small Talk is a home phone for kids in New Zealand. It plugs into a power point and runs on your home Wi-Fi, with no landline or SIM. Parents choose who it can call and when, from the parent app. The phone is $129, and calls between Small Talk phones are free.

When can I actually buy one?

From 9 November 2026. Leave your email and we’ll tell you the day the shop opens.

What kind of phone is it, and does it need a landline?

Our phones are built on a tried-and-tested design by Grandstream. They’re tough enough for kids and a blank canvas for them to make their own (that’s where the stickers come in). We’re also working on a Small Talk phone of our very own.

No landline needed. It plugs into a power point and joins your home Wi-Fi. No SIM, no technician.

Who can my kids call, and how many contacts can they have?

Only the people you approve in the parent app, both for calls in and calls out. There’s no limit on contacts. Nana, best mates, cousins, the neighbour with the trampoline, you decide who makes the list.

Can they call 111?

Yes, any time, even outside phone hours. Just make sure the address in your parent app matches where the phone lives, so help knows where to go. Small Talk needs power and WiFi to work, so if either drops out, it’s a good idea to have a backup plan.

What does it cost, and can I change or cancel my plan?

Check out our Plans for prices. You can switch plans any time, and the change kicks in on your next monthly invoice. Need to cancel? No hard feelings. It’s easy to do in our parent app.

Can I take it to a different house?

Yes! Whether it’s off to Nana’s for the weekend or moving house for good, just let us know the new address so we can keep it up to date for 111 calls. Then connect the phone to the new WiFi in the parent app and you’re good to go.

Can we move it between rooms?

Yes. Unplug it, move it, plug it back in. Bob’s your uncle.

What happens if someone rings while the phone hours are closed?

The phone stays quiet, so no surprise calls at bedtime. Callers on your list hear a short message letting them know it’s outside phone hours and to try again later.

Can both parents manage the app?

Yes. Up to four parents or carers can manage the same phone, each with their own log in.

Do you have an app?

Sort of! The parent app is a website you can save to your phone’s home screen, where it opens and works just like an app. No app store, no downloads.

Do you record or listen to the calls?

No. Calls are never recorded, so what’s said on Small Talk stays on Small Talk. Voicemails are saved so your kids can play them back, and the parent app shows you who called and when. That information is private and never shared.

Can we have more than one Small Talk phone in our home?

Yes! One for each kid, or one for upstairs and downstairs, the more the merrier. You can manage them all from the same parent app.

Is it easy to set up?

Super easy. Plug it in, then follow the steps in the parent app to join your WiFi. Most families are done in minutes. The whole setup has been tested and approved by our very own Small Talk Nana, who says it’s a breeze. If you get stuck, just flick us an email at warren@smalltalk.nz and we’ll help you out.

Kia ora, we’re Jess and Warren.

We’re the family behind Small Talk, along with our two chief product testers, Stevie and Walter.

We live in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, with family scattered from Christchurch to Great Barrier Island. Our kids wanted to chat to their grandparents, cousins and mates whenever they liked. We wanted that too, just without handing over our phones (and the entire internet along with them).

So we made them a phone. Real buttons, a proper ring, no screen in sight, and peace of mind knowing they can call for help if they need it.

Then our family wanted one. Then our friends. Then friends of friends. Turns out all that small talk around the kitchen table was going somewhere.

Now we can’t wait to see it in homes all over Aotearoa, helping kids grow a little more independent and keeping families a little more connected.

More chats. Less “can I borrow your phone?”

Jess and Warren smiling outside, each holding one of our two kidsThe Small Talk Family