If your kids are like mine, they’re obsessed with taking pictures, and well, your phone is a better camera option than your DSLR. Except, it’s still a pretty expensive piece of tech.  So, when I heard about the Kickstarter campaign for the new Pixlplay camera for kids, which lets kids play photographer while protecting your phone, I was excited to try it out for a few days.

The Pixlplay camera for kids is basically a housing device for your phone that looks like a real kids’ camera. The shutter button connects to your smart phone via the audio jack, so all you have to do is open the camera app and let them click away. I absolutely love that there’s no special app I have to download to make this work.

Related: 5 terrific pro photography tips for kids who want to get beyond selfies

The Pixlplay camera for kids turns your old smart phone into a camera for your budding photographer.

Related: 6 smart, easy tips for teaching kids photography

Now, there is the issue of putting this on the phone you actually use because, well, it’s definitely not a LifeProof or OtterBox case. In other words, I’d stick with an old smart phone, or on their own smart phone (if they have one), so that you’re not dealing with putting this on and off your own device every time they get the photography bug.

And a little word of wisdom: I’d recommend that you disconnect the phone they’re using from your shared family cloud account so you’re not suddenly overloaded with weird photos. Or possibly embarrassing ones.

You can order the Pixlplay camera by backing their Kickstarter campaign today. Thanks to Pixlplay for loaning us a camera to try for this feature.