The newest status symbol for weary smartphone users is a $59 gray square that makes Instagram harder to reach.
“It feels overwhelming and anxiety-provoking for many people to even consider relinquishing their smartphone,” Cort M. Dorn-Medeiros, Ph.D., a licensed professional counselor, addiction specialist and Lewis & Clark College Associate Professor and Counseling, Therapy, and School Psychology Department Chair, told the New York Post.
The product, called Brick, does not damage or fully disable a phone. Users choose distracting apps in a companion app, tap the phone against the physical device to block them, then tap again when they intentionally want access back.
The extra step creates friction that ordinary time-limit reminders often lack. According to Brick’s product page, the $59 device requires no subscription or battery, works with multiple phones and includes five emergency unlocks in case a user loses the hardware or needs immediate access.
New York Post reporter McKenzie Beard tried the system for more than three weeks. She wrote that she reached for blocked apps repeatedly at first, felt uncomfortable during empty moments and eventually replaced some scrolling with reading, exercise, cooking and face-to-face conversation.
“A lot of smartphone use is unintentional,” Dorn-Medeiros said. He added that the Brick can help by restoring intention to the choice.
Related: Could ‘Appstinence’ Solve Your Doomscrolling Addiction?
That is a promising observation, not a medical guarantee. The company publishes customer surveys and glowing testimonials, but a phone accessory cannot diagnose or cure anxiety, depression or a compulsive behavior.
The concern behind the trend is real. The US Surgeon General’s advisory on social media and youth mental health reported that adolescents who spent more than three hours a day on social media faced twice the risk of poor mental-health outcomes, while also stressing that researchers need more evidence about who is most vulnerable and why.
For parents, the better question is not simply how many minutes appear on a screen-time report. The American Academy of Pediatrics’ 2026 guidance asks families to consider the child, the content, self-regulation, what media crowds out and how parents communicate about it.
The AAP recommends a family media plan, screen-free spaces and adults who model the habits they want children to learn. A family might start with phones away at dinner, nonessential notifications turned off, devices outside bedrooms overnight or a set time for checking social media rather than letting it fill every pause.
A physical blocker may help some households hold that boundary, but it is not the only option. Built-in focus settings, a charging station across the room or a simple basket by the table can add the same useful pause without another purchase.
The replacement matters as much as the restriction. Put a book where the phone usually sits, plan a walk, call a friend, play with the kids or leave enough quiet for prayer; an empty habit rarely stays empty for long.
If device use repeatedly disrupts sleep, school, work or relationships, families should talk with a pediatrician or qualified mental-health professional rather than expecting an app to carry the load. Technology can support wise choices, but it cannot make them for us.
Brick’s popularity says something hopeful: many people are tired of surrendering every spare minute to a feed. Reclaiming attention starts with one honest boundary and something better to give that attention to.
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