Being a parent right now fucking blows

My 10 year old son desperately wants a phone. All of his friends either have a phone or unlimited access to an ipad for facetiming. Because nobody has a landline anymore, we have to get him one of these devices simply so he can talk to his friends outside of school. Is it worth protecting him from screen addiction just so he can be permanently out of the loop on all friend conversations and activity? I'm thinking an apple watch might be the least bad option.