Zach Nasgowitz & TJ Driver – Brick

Zach and TJ are graduates from the University of Wisconsin Madison. As college students they realized the benefits and drawbacks to phones. They allow us to be more connected than ever, do more things with less effort and overall make everyday tasks simpler. However, at the same time they disconnect us from our family and friends and keep us from completing work. Both tried to just stop bringing their phones with them whenever they went out, but in this day and age phones are becoming more and more necessary for day to day activities.

There had to be a way to remove the time consuming distractions from a phone while still being able to hang onto its functionality. That’s when Nasgowitz and Driver came up with Brick. The user decides which apps they feel are necessary to use throughout the day and which ones are a distraction. Then at the start of the day the user “bricks” their phone by tapping the brick, going about their day. Now they can use their phone productively without any distractions. Then once the user feels they are ready to have the other apps back they can tap the brick again and freely use them.

With over 10,000 positive reviews, Brick is gaining a lot of popularity. Within the past week I have seen numerous ads on Instagram and YouTube from Brick and other companies selling a similar product. Zach and TJ took a step in the right direction coming up with this invention. As technology advances, more and more people are realizing how truly distracting phones can be and are looking for a way to keep distractions to a minimum. Despite being a decent price of $60, the issue of not people not being able to put their phones down makes their product more and more appealing each day.