For some children, yes, but there are children that actually prefer reality over special effects and amusing features. In fact, there are plenty of kids who don’t like phones that talk back to them or play songs at the push of a button. According to them, that’s not what a real phone does, and that takes away from the fun of having a phone, even if it’s fake. They may also have little to no interest in cute characters and animations, or big, colorful buttons that make it loud and clear that it’s a toy.
The benefit to a display phone is that it’s modeled after existing phones, which is why you see authentic logos for carriers like Verizon. Because they’re commonly used by cell phone stores, they are completely accurate in terms of exterior features, including the size, color, screen image, buttons, and icons. While it may seem boring that none of these features actually work, this is not an issue with kids who have imaginations to spare. For them, role-playing situations like ordering pizza or making a doctor’s appointment are incredibly fun and interesting, but only if it’s done on a “real” phone.