I think the Motorola lines sounds like it would be an awesome fit for your daughter.
Even though DH and I have always been techy, we too jumped on the smartphone bandwagon a lot later than everyone around us. Mainly because we didn't "need" it. Now my work supplies my smartphone and DH has a personal one he uses a lot for work.
3 yrs ago, my stepfather bought me the iPhone 5. I didn't need the latest and greatest, but it was a nice gift. I had to carry my work Blackberry every day, so I left it at home for my kids to play with. They were 10 and 11 then and really enjoyed being able to play various games on it. We usually kept in in airplane mode and used it on wifi only. I would use it occasionally in the evenings and when we traveled (we travel a lot), the iPhone is all mine. I take a lot of pics, use social media, look up stuff online - it really helps. I particularly like looking stuff up on the fly - sometimes we need a restaurant reservation, sometimes I need the hours of operation, etc etc. And the #1 need we have - a GPS app :)
My kids also both used it for school (very occasionally). Their school uses iPads heavily and because there aren't enough to go around, encourage the kids to bring in their own devices. They would do stuff like create iMovies for class projects. In particular, my daughter has gotten really good at that.
My iPhone 5 died this summer and we bought a used iPhone 4S. The home button is broken, the rear case of the phone is completely smashed...but it is still useable and cost me $25. It's locked (with outrageous unlocking fees) so I am not putting a SIM card in presently. My daughter has been using this phone primarily. I installed a free calling/texting app on it for her to call/text me over wifi, she uses iMovies, and communicates with her friends via Instagram. In fact, she doesn't have most of her friends' phone numbers - she connects with them via Instagram. I flick through it (and her direct messages with her friends) occasionally and she knows I do.
I am planning to give my son my ancient Blackberry to use basically as a dumbphone to call/text me occasionally. I have an old prepaid SIM I use only very occasionally since calls/texts are expensive. But since he only needs to call/text me 1x every 2 weeks on average (if he is stranded without a pickup), it will still work out in the long run. Right now he mooches off other people's cellphones, which leaves me feeling guilty.
I have no issues with my kids using tech and a certain level of comfort with tech is going to be essential for the workplace of the future. I know at my work, comfort and ease with tech is an essential job skill we look for when hiring. And of course, tech is used heavily in schools too.
I'm not a tech-adverse mom though. As far as I am concerned, smartphones are to this generation what landlines and desktop computers were to my generation. I was fully addicted to internet chat rooms as a kid and turned out just fine. It did not stunt any social growth but instead, I met a much wider range of people and it expanded my social horizons. Hard for me to complain much though, I love online forums and have met many forum friends "in real life". Heck, I founded and ran a forum for the main purpose of helping people meet each other online and from there, develop offline friendships.
