MP3 Player

An ESP32-based, handheld MP3 player I built from scratch so I could listen to music without my phone distracting me.

Built by Maria Navarro

I like listening to music while doing chores and stuff around the house, but my phone is a constant distraction: notifications, apps, the urge to check things. So instead of just putting it on do not disturb, I decided to build a dedicated MP3 player. No streaming platforms, no notifications, just music. The device is built around an Adafruit ESP32 Feather V2, a VS1053B audio codec, a 1.8" TFT display, and a LiPo battery targeting 8+ hours of playback. It reads MP3 files from an SD card, displays track info on screen, and is controlled entirely through physical buttons. The whole thing will be housed in a custom 3D printed enclosure, roughly iPhone-sized. This is also my first time doing full embedded systems work; designing the circuit, mapping pins, writing firmware, and building an enclosure from scratch. Currently in the hardware assembly phase with both the display and audio subsystems tested and working.

View the full build on The Hive