It’s the 21st century, and most of us can’t go more than 20 minutes without looking at our smartphones. And if you, like us, are desperately looking into how to reduce your screen time and scroll less, we’ve made a list of 15 essentials to help you do so. Think distraction blockers, flip phones and even paper planners. Trust us: By the end of 2026, you’ll be “doomscrolling” less and, hey, maybe you’ll find a new hobby while you’re at it.
So, shop our top picks below to help reduce your phone scrolling time this year. While it may feel unusually difficult in the beginning, you’ll thank us later.
15 Essentials for Your Phone-Free Journey
- Phone Jail: Can’t resist your mobile? A timed lock box will help you control your screen time habits. With an electronic combination lock, it’ll truly test your self control when it comes to your electronics — $30
- Blocking Device: The BestSelf Helm Focus Device is effectively a “distraction blocker.” It activates your preset focus mode with a single tap. Giving you a preset amount of distraction-free time, it may be what you need to kick things into gear — $104
- Good Morning: Forget the phone alarm! The Hatch 3 Alarm Clock wakes you up with natural-looking light and soothing sounds. That way, you can get up sans the stress — $170
- Dumb Phone: Who said you even needed a smartphone? Flip phones still exist, like the Nokia 2780 Flip. It gives you all the necessities that come from a regular phone, and it’ll draw you away from scrolling with actual buttons to send essential texts and make calls —$90
- Track It: Track your digital detox with “Unplug: A Day and Night Journal for Cultivating Off-Screen Well-Being.” This 90-day journal helps you unplug and live more presently — $17
- Time Keeper: You don’t need a smartphone to keep track of time or your health. Smart watches like the Garmin Forerunner 165 keep track of your time, steps, heart rate and more. (Just refrain from connecting your phone notifications!) — $200
- Reader: While an Amazon Kindle does have a screen, it lets you read books instead of doomscrolling through social media. You can download any book in the world on it, and since it holds 16 GB, it also has space for magazines, newspapers and more — $90
- Plan It: While you may generally keep track of your plans on your phone, consider a paper planner. It marks the day, month and year. And writing things down will always make it easier to remember your to-do list anyway — $19
- Remember Me: Having games on your phone is extremely convenient and entertaining. But consider taking handheld games like Hasbro’s Gaming Simon in your bag instead. Testing your memory, it’ll benefit you long-term more than you think — $22
- Fidget King: Most of us could probably admit that scrolling is a fidgeting habit at this point. These fidget cubes give you something to do with your hands when you’re waiting for the bus or simply taking a Zoom call — $14
- Read Up: This day and age, it’s hard to separate yourself from your personal devices. Consider reading a thinkpiece like “Less Screen, More Life” to curb your screen addiction. If you’re overwhelmed by social media, this one could be for you — $14
- Snap It: For many of us, phones are a vehicle to document life’s most important moments. Instead, consider bringing a small digital camera like Kodak’s Pixpro Friendly Zoom FZ45 in your bag. It has a wide angle lens that’ll take just as good of a photo as your iPhone — $120
- Artist in the Making: If you need a creative outlet in lieu of a smartphone, get a pocket watercoloring kit. This one has a full palette, a pen, clip and two brushes to ensure you have everything you need to make a masterpiece — $23
- Illuminated: Take the light with you wherever you go (without having to unlock your phone!) with these Frienda Credit Card Magnifiers. They can fit right in your wallet, and since they come in a pack of eight, you can give one to everyone in your family — $19
- Checkmate: Yes, Top 1 Touch Electronic Chess technically has a screen. But, it’s a phone-free distraction that’ll also build your critical thinking and strategy skills — $48
