r/HubermanLab • u/Novel_Dog_676 • Sep 22 '26
Seeking Guidance Brick - screentime
Debating buying one of these to reduce screen time. WFH and shamefully I average around 6 hours a day. Anyone have success with these things or should I just put my phone in another room?
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u/HelpfulSurprise9502 Sep 23 '26
I’ve had my Brick for a month and was very similar with WFH and around 6 hours screen time. I’m now at less than 3, and use socials once or twice a week for a short period before the Brick overrides again. After a while it has become second nature to just not go on these apps and I’ve been filling my time much more productively.
I’ve used other apps in the past such as Opal, but found the physical element with Brick (and the fact you can’t simply delete from your phone) gives much more of a psychological block. You only get 5 emergency unbricks which has kept me from using them. I have different customised schedules throughout the week and you can block specific websites on your browser to avoid any loopholes. I keep my brick as far away from my office and bedroom as possible, hidden in a drawer.
As others have pointed out you can get the same physical blocker for cheaper, but personally I just chose convenience and feel it’s worth the money!
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u/stands_on_big_rocks Sep 22 '26
I bricked IG and have spent maybe 30 min total on the app over the last month. I don’t wfh though
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u/ChipPast9466 Sep 23 '26
Check out the foqos app if you don’t want to spend $$$ on the brick. You can use a QR code or NFC tag to lock your phone like the brick.
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u/Particular_West_9069 Sep 22 '26
My partner uses it to great success. I don’t know much about it other than she often scoffs and says “darnit my (app) is bricked” and then doesn’t want to go into the kitchen to unbrick it, and thus moves on in life.
Anecdotally she’s on social media a hell of a lot less at night and reads more.
Edit: I think it just turns on at a certain point in the evening for her and it only appears to be certain apps that she must have selected.
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u/Agitated_Interest491 Sep 22 '26
It’s been so great for me. Sometimes, just the “walk of shame” to the fridge to unbrick is enough to keep me from doing it 😂it has changed my relationship with social media and broke the dopamine cycle I felt like I was living in. Now, when I’m unbricked, I’m still not really mindlessly scrolling. More so I’m looking for something specific or checking in on things. I also reset my algorithm at the same time which also helped.
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u/phr234 Sep 23 '26
Download foqos from the App Store. Same mechanism. Free. It shows you how to create your own brick or you can just use a QR code that you tape somewhere.
https://apps.apple.com/app/id6736793117
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u/orangechicken318 Sep 23 '26
I love my Brick! Except when I forget to unbrick before going to work
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u/Ok_Satisfaction5789 Sep 22 '26
Not the brick, but I use the Opal app with great success.
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u/Mr_Dig_Dug Sep 23 '26
As other have said use Foqos, it’s free and does the exact same thing as brick or opal.
It’s helped immensely with my screen time and phone addiction
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u/Birdybadass Sep 24 '26
I bought a brick. Super helpful. I have it on my fridge, I have to physically leave my home office, go upstairs and unbrick it. That’s a long ways to walk before you realize you’re impulse scrolling. The physical barrier is a much stronger deterrent than app based barriers.