There is a particular kind of irony in needing a physical object to stop you from using your phone. That is essentially what Brick is, and yet, for a lot of people, that might be exactly what they need.
Brick is a small NFC device, about the size of a poker chip, that pairs with your smartphone. Once set up, it uses your phone’s existing screen time controls to lock you out of social media apps like TikTok and Instagram. The twist is the physical element. To unlock your apps, you have to physically find the Brick and tap your phone against it. After a preset window of time, your apps lock up again automatically.
The Idea Is Genuinely Clever
The practical logic here is sound. You can set schedules where your phone is bricked, or manually tap your phone off the Brick to lock it up. The only way to unlock it again, is to go and tap your Brick.
If your Brick is stuck to the fridge downstairs, and you are in bed at midnight, the friction of getting up and walking down two flights of stairs is usually enough to kill the urge to doom scroll. You go back to sleep. Job done.
I found this especially useful at bedtime. Having the Brick outside the bedroom meant the mental maths of “is five more minutes of Instagram worth getting up for?” almost always landed on no. That alone is worth something.
It also made a difference when working from home. You might still walk downstairs to unlock your apps, but knowing you are burning through limited screen time means you are probably more deliberate about it.
I particularly like that they’ve made the Brick magnetic so it’s rather easy to stick to surfaces like a fridge for example.
Where It Falls Apart
Here is where Brick has a fairly significant problem: you can delete the app. That is it. The moment you uninstall the Brick app, your social media unlocks fully and immediately. The system relies entirely on your willingness to keep the app installed, which rather undercuts the whole premise.
There is a setting, disabled by default, that allows you to ensure rules remain even if the app is deleted. But again, it’s up to you to have willpower and this is clearly a device for where willpower is low.
There are five emergency unlocks built in, resetting daily, which is a reasonable safety net. But if you are the kind of person who will delete the app the moment temptation gets loud enough, Brick is not going to save you.
It is also worth noting that the underlying tech is not Brick’s invention. The app works by leveraging Apple’s Screen Time or Android’s Digital Wellbeing, both of which already exist on your phone for free. Brick just adds a physical layer of friction on top.
So, Do You Need It?
Brick costs just over €60 from getbrick.com, and there is no subscription. Once you buy it, that is your lot.
Whether it is worth the money depends entirely on your relationship with your phone. If you looked at Brick and thought “that could actually help me,” that instinct is telling you something. The question is whether the physical nudge is enough, or whether you will simply route around it the first time willpower runs low.
My honest take: if you are struggling with social media use, Brick is a nudge in the right direction. But it is not a solution. The real work is still on you.
