KIDS SWIPE A CARD AND MUSIC PLAYS — A SCREEN-FREE RASPBERRY PI JUKEBOX
A three-year-old places a card on a wooden box and an album plays — no screen, no Spotify algorithm, no Wi-Fi required.
AudioHome
Built withRaspberry Pi
- difficulty
- ●●●○○
- time
- a weekend-plus
- license
- MIT
- repo
- repo ACTIVE1,802 stars
●●●○○ · a weekend-plus · MIT · 1,802 stars · repo ACTIVE
WHAT YOU’LL NEED
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COMPAREE VERDICT
Phoniebox is software that turns a Raspberry Pi into an RFID-controlled music player. A child places a card on the reader and an album, playlist, podcast or audiobook starts. No touchscreen, no app store, no recommendation engine — the parent assigns content to each card through a web interface, and for local files the box works offline (web streams and Spotify need internet). The software is mature, well-documented, and the community is active. The simplest build is plug and play over USB — USB RFID reader, USB speaker, no soldering; GPIO buttons and audio HATs are optional extras. There is no single case design: everyone builds their own box, and that is half the fun. The software install is scripted and reliable. The hardware troubleshooting — a reader that is not detected, a speaker that buzzes on a weak power supply, the wrong ALSA device — is where the time goes.
IN THE REPO
GOOD TO KNOW
- —MIT licence, permits commercial use.
- —Full Python software stack with web interface for card assignment and volume control.
- —Installation scripts for Raspberry Pi OS included, active community support.
- —Bill of materials lists reader, speaker, buttons, power supply — no pre-made case design.
- —Documentation covers software setup thoroughly, hardware assembly is builder's choice.
- —No PCB, no 3D print files — this is a software project that you wire to off-the-shelf modules.
Parts to buy
7 itemsFrom our check of the build. Exact quantities and part numbers are in the creator’s BOM.
Can I build this?
Build at your own risk. Projects involve tools, electronics and sometimes mains voltage — follow the creator’s safety notes.
Videos
Community build walkthrough, hardware choices and wiring shown.
More builds like this
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Start here
Navigation into the creator’s own docs — we don’t rewrite the guide, we route you to the source.
- 1.Read the installation docs (Start with the README, then the docs folder — hardware compatibility list is there.)
- 2.Pick your RFID reader(USB readers are plug and play; RC522 and PN532 boards are wired to the GPIO pins. Match the card frequency to the reader.)
- 3.Decide on audio output(USB speaker is simplest, audio HAT with amp sounds better and avoids Pi's noisy onboard audio.)
- 4.Run the one-line installer(SSH to the Pi, run the installer script, answer the prompts — it handles dependencies and config.)
Resources
Documentation, files and community threads for this build — we link straight to the original sources and never rehost the creator’s files.
KNOWN ISSUES
- The Pi 4 needs a good power supply — 3A USB-C official adapter or equivalent, otherwise audio stutters or the reader drops out under load.
- GPIO reader modules such as the RC522 often ship with the pin header loose, so you have to solder it before wiring the board to the Pi. A USB reader avoids this entirely.
- The web interface is not exposed to the internet by default — you access it from a device on the same network, plan for that or read the docs on reverse proxies.
- GPIO buttons need pull-up or pull-down resistors if the script does not enable the internal ones — a floating pin registers phantom presses.
- If using a USB sound card or speaker, the Pi may enumerate it as card 1 instead of card 0 — the config file needs the correct ALSA device or nothing plays.
- The wooden case in most build photos is custom — there is no universal plan, you are making that part up or adapting someone else's design to your hardware.
Can I use NFC tags instead of RFID cards?
Yes, with a 13.56 MHz reader: the README reports MIFARE NFC stickers and tags working with both the RC522 and the PN532. Just make sure your cards or tags use the same frequency as your reader - many cheap USB readers are 125 kHz.
Does it work with Spotify or streaming services?
Yes, within limits: besides local files, playlists, podcasts and web radio, Phoniebox supports Spotify (a Spotify Premium account is needed, and the box then needs internet for that content).
How do I assign albums to cards?
Through the web interface: put your audio in a folder (from any computer on your network), swipe a card and link it to that folder.
Will a Raspberry Pi Zero work?
Yes. The README says Phoniebox runs on all Raspberry Pi models and the Zero, and lists the Pi Zero WH among suggested boards. On a Zero you need adapters or a hub for USB devices, and an audio HAT is a common choice for sound.
Community builds
No community builds yet — be the first, we feature the best ones.
Discussion1
FROM THE COMPAREE TEAM
1,800 stars and the software is solid — the variable is the case and the hardware you pick. What speaker and reader combination did you settle on, and did it work first try?
MiczFlor and contributors
Micz Flor started Phoniebox as a contactless jukebox for the Raspberry Pi, inspired by earlier DIY RFID jukebox projects and by commercial players like tonies and Hörbert. The project grew into a community-maintained platform with hardware flexibility, a German forum community and a Matrix chat.
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DISCLAIMER
- Comparee is not the author of the projects featured here. All rights to each project belong to its creator — every page links to the original source, and we never host creators’ files.
- Information is provided without warranty and may become outdated as projects evolve. Prices are indicative bands only — always check the creator’s parts list for current costs.
- Building and operating any project is at your own responsibility. Protective equipment, safe workshop practice and compliance with local regulations are the builder’s responsibility.
CompareeTEAM2mo agoedited
Practical notes from our verification: the repository is actively maintained, the README has a build gallery, and the official site at phoniebox.de points to community help in the German forum-raspberrypi.de forum, with a Matrix chat linked from the README. The community build videos show a wide range of hardware — USB vs HAT audio, different RFID readers, GPIO vs arcade buttons — and the basic USB build needs no soldering. The biggest variable is the case: there is no standard design, the project's motto is that everyone builds an original, and that is where most of the extra time goes. One thing to decide up front: version 3 (future3) is a rewrite that is becoming stable but has not yet ported every feature of version 2.x, so check the feature you care about before choosing which one to install. Correction (4 October 2026): we re-checked this page line by line against the project's own repository, documentation and videos, and fixed errors in earlier versions.