Knobby Is a Unique Handheld Remote That Controls Spotify Connect Devices

There are a thousand ways you can listen to your music, but it’s hard to think of a way that is more convenient than Spotify. The service is affordable, has a massive library, and can be accessed from a wide range of devices. One of the best features is Spotify Connect, which lets you use any device associated with your account to control the music playing on any other gadget. You can, for instance, play music on your smart TV while controlling that music from your smartphone. If you don’t want to use your smartphone, you can build this open source dedicated remote called Knobby.

Knobby is a little handheld remote that lets you scroll through Spotify playlists or genres. It’s wireless and battery powered, making it perfect for parties. Instead of having to unlock your phone and hand it to guests so they can choose music, you can simply hand them your Knobby remote. The only control input is a large knob on top, which lets them scroll through the playlists you have setup. Clicking the knob selects that playlist and starts it playing on your Spotify Connect device associated with your account that is currently in use. A small full-color LCD screen on the Knobby displays the selected playlist and information like the battery level and the progress through the current song.

The device is controlled by a LilyGO TTGO T-Display ESP32 board, which you can purchase for less than $10. That board has a built-in LCD screen and a LiPo battery charging module, features that reduce the size of the device and the overall cost. The only other components required are a rotary encoder and a 1000mAh LiPo battery. Those components are housed within a simple, but attractive, enclosure that can be 3D-printed. All of the code to make Knobby work with Spotify is provided on the GitHub page, you just have to configure it to use your Spotify account credentials. It works over WiFi (the Bluetooth connection is not used), so you have to connect Knobby to your home network. Once it’s setup, Knobby is perfect for parties and other situations when you want everyone to have the ability to control your Spotify music.