LEGO Unveils Smart Bricks with Sensors

Do smart bricks rescue kids from screens, or do they corrupt Lego's pure analog magic with digital gimmicks?

Published 1 day ago

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Above: The LEGO SMART Brick is demonstrated during the LEGO press conference in Las Vegas on Jan. 5. Image credit: Patrick T. Fallon/AFP/Getty Images

The Spin

Optimist narrative

Smart bricks represent a brilliant evolution that pulls kids away from hypnotic screens and back into three-dimensional creative play with actual objects. This technology breathes new life into constructions with sounds and lights, marking the most significant advancement in the Lego system since minifigures debuted in 1978. Fighting for children's attention against smartphones and consoles requires innovation, and anything that decouples young minds from digital addiction deserves support.

The Times Meristation

Cynical narrative

Smart bricks destroy the very essence of what makes Lego valuable — pure analog play that lets imagination run free without digital interference. The original product already provided the perfect antidote to dopamine-addled screen culture, absorbing children for billions of hours annually through creative, unstructured play. Adding microchips and sound effects won't encourage digital natives toward analog thinking; it just introduces expensive gimmicks that undermine imaginative development.

r/lego on Reddit The Telegraph