5 Weird Electronics That Can Help Kick Bad Habits

Arsenii Palivoda/ShutterstockNo one wants their days filled with bad habits, but sometimes they can be hard to break. With everything from constantly checking our phones to poor posture while sitting, life would be considerably more comfortable if we could somehow banish these and other bad habits from our daily routines.

Sometimes willpower alone isn't enough to stop an unwanted urge or break a hardwired habit, so how about trying a gadget that's been specifically designed to give you a hand? There are plenty of options available, many of them packing interesting tech features to help you along.

If you have any bad habits that you're trying to banish, one or more of the following gadgets might help. Let's take a look at some of the weirder designs on the market, including, first up, a wristwatch that deploys a mild electrical stimulus to encourage you to end that troublesome habit of oversleeping.

Read more: 5 Things To Stop Doing If You Have A Samsung Galaxy Watch

If you often find yourself hitting the snooze button repeatedly, or simply struggling to haul yourself out of bed every morning, then a mild electric "zap" should get you moving. Pavlok launched its first Shock Clock wristband in 2016. The latest iteration, the Shock Clock MAX, arrived in 2023. Now with a display, the device "ensures you wake up by gentle vibration or electric shock."

But don't worry. The Shock Clock MAX won't be sending 50,000 volts through your body every time you refuse to get out of bed. According to the maker, it's designed to be "unpleasant and startling rather than truly painful," comparing it to a static shock that you might get when touching a metal doorknob.

Reassuringly, if you find your first zap a bit too intense, you can tone it down by adjusting the strength between zero and 100%. One way to use it to tackle oversleeping is to set it to deliver a shock about five minutes after your regular alarm goes off. This gives you a brief window to stop the shock from being delivered, hopefully waking you up enough to get out of bed and start your day. The Shock Clock Max's standard price is $220, though sometimes you can find it discounted for a limited period.

Although staying hydrated is essential for keeping your body functioning at its best, many people neglect this simple habit, risking everything from constipation and headaches to fatigue and painful kidney stones. Sometimes we're so immersed in work or another activity that we don't keep tabs on our daily water intake.

That's where the HidrateSpark PRO 2 comes in, acting as a smart water canister that aims to help you build healthier hydration habits. It features a built-in sensor that tracks how much you drink, while a glowing LED light reminds you of when it's time to take a sip (so be sure to keep it in view!).

The HidrateSpark PRO 2 also comes with a smartphone app that records your daily water intake and tracks progress toward your hydration goal, while also allowing you to customize reminders. The company behind it, HidrateSmart, was founded in 2014, and the PRO 2 launched in 2025. It's offered in three sizes: a 21 oz smart bottle for $80, a 32 oz smart bottle for $85, and a 30 oz smart tumbler for $85.

Whether it's a family member at home or folks you see when you're out and about, millions of people are wasting chunks of their day on their phones, mindlessly scrolling through social media or getting lost in other apps. Or maybe that's what you do. In that case, if you'd like to claim back some of your precious time for more productive activities, then a quirky gadget called Brick may be able to help.

The idea behind Brick is simple. Instead of relying on willpower alone, the gadget puts a physical obstacle between you and your phone habits. The diminutive device looks like a small block of plastic and has no screen or buttons. To use it, you open Brick's companion app and choose the apps that have been taking up way too much of your time. Next, tap your phone against Brick to activate the restrictions. The selected apps will become inaccessible, keeping them from your beady eyes.

Hopefully, Brick will help you reduce the time you spend staring at your handset, and even protect you from so-called "phone body," but if you really must check your beloved Instagram or TikTok, you simply tap your phone against Brick again. For the best results, it's a good idea to put Brick somewhere inconvenient after you've initiated the block, which should make it that bit harder to cave in. Brick launched in 2023 and costs $59.

With so many of us sitting at desks these days, whether for work, web browsing, or gaming, it's easy to adopt a poor posture without even realizing it — even if the chair has a great ergonomic design. Sitting slouched or hunched over puts a lot of pressure on your spine, potentially leading to injury over time. The Upright Go 2 is a neat little device that's designed to gently vibrate whenever it detects that you're slouching.

Retailing for $100 (sometimes discounted) and made by Israel-based Upright Technologies, you stick the Upright Go 2 on your upper back, near your spine, using the included reusable adhesives. A necklace sold as part of the slightly pricier Pro kit offers an alternative way to wear it on your back if you don't like the feeling of having it stuck there or are worried about it falling off.

Once the device is on your back, you calibrate your posture using the accompanying smartphone app, at the same time setting your slouch threshold. Once set, you'll receive a buzz on your back, prompting you to straighten up. The app tracks your posture data and provides feedback to help you become more aware of your posture and improve your sitting habits.

Snoring is a slightly more unusual habit because you can't consciously control it when you're asleep, and usually the only reason you know you're doing it is when someone you're sharing the bed with complains. Still, there are a plethora of gadgets that claim to prevent snoring, including this unusual-looking device launched by Chinese firm VVFLY Electronics.

The Snore Circle EMS attaches to the underside of your chin using something similar to a medical electrode sticker. When the device detects snoring, it delivers a mild electrical muscle stimulation (hence the EMS in its name) designed to activate muscles around your throat to help reduce the snoring without waking you up. The Snore Circle EMS has 36 different stimulation patterns and automatically adjusts the strength of its electrical pulses according to the frequency and intensity of your snoring and the limits that you set.

The Snore Circle has a regular price of $179, though it's sometimes discounted. It's worth noting, too, that persistent, loud snoring can sometimes be a sign of sleep apnea, a potentially serious condition in which your breathing repeatedly stops and starts during sleep. If you think you might have it, then it's important to seek medical advice.