Developers keep Spotify Car Thing alive with custom firmware

Developers save Spotify Car Thing with custom firmware, Nocturne.

: Spotify's Car Thing is set to become obsolete by December 9, but developers created custom firmware called Nocturne to keep it functional. Despite its hardware limitations, the new software allows users to interact fully with Spotify’s library. However, Nocturne requires a separate device for network connectivity, with plans to remove this dependency.

With Spotify planning to disable the Car Thing on December 9, its users faced losing functionality. However, developers Brandon Saldan and 'shadow' have introduced Nocturne, a custom firmware designed to revive the device by restoring its ability to search and play Spotify's media, despite its weak hardware.

The Nocturne software requires a supporting device like the Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W for network capabilities. Developers aim to eliminate this need in future updates. Users have praised the software for its aesthetic interface, although it currently suffers from UI lag due to a lack of GPU acceleration.

Josh Hendrickson revealed the Car Thing's open-source software, contributing to the development of Nocturne. Interested users can follow the GitHub instructions to flash their devices or wait for invites via Google Forms, with assurances that reverting to the original firmware is possible if needed.

Car TechNocturneModding