How Tuneshin went from wooden blocks to the ultimate way to view album covers

Main points

• Tuneshine combines IoT technology with thoughtful design to enhance visual music in the home.
• The product’s founder, Tobias Butler, developed the product during the epidemic and focused on smart LED album cover display.
• Tuneshine stands out from traditional audio technology by providing a visual representation of music without playing audio.

Internet of Things (IoT) technology is now everywhere, from Wi-Fi-enabled light bulbs to smart refrigerators. But rarely do you see IoT furniture that combines thoughtful design with an appreciation for audio.

Tunesshine is exactly that. Tuneshine is an LED album cover display with a wooden box that connects to your phone and uses data from Spotify, Apple Music, Sonos, or Last.fm to display the album art for the songs you’re listening to while connected. You can use it with your favorite speakers or headphones, so you can add a visual component to your listening environment.

I spoke with Tuneshine CEO, founder and engineer Tobias Butler to learn more about the making of Tuneshine, the messaging behind it, and Butler’s plans for the future of the product.

“I think it’s timeless, it really fits your personal style, it’s not an anonymous glass rectangle.”

The Origin of Tuneshine

Tobias Butler came up with the idea for Tuneshine while tinkering with home hardware in the early days of the pandemic. With a background in software engineering, he was able to build mobile applications for Tuneshine by learning new programming languages, dabbling in the hardware side as well as the business side, and working to find vendors and partners.

Starting from a square LED screen, today’s Tuneshine is created

“I got these square screens and I was thinking, they’re really cool, the colors are great, they’re super bright, and they’re square. What can I do with them that would fit perfectly with the square form factor?” Butler said . “I’m not the first person to try to show album artwork on these screens, but I thought, ‘Okay, this has to be a product, there’s something really eye-catching here.'”

Its manufacturing and construction is another quality that sets the Tuneshine apart. Butler currently assembles each Tuneshine by hand at his home in Auckland, using specially sourced components, from imported electronic parts to wooden boxes made by another Auckland company, Joinery Structures. Once he gets the parts to his apartment, putting together a Tuneshine takes about five minutes, a process he calls streamlined.

Tuneshin is creating something different from the familiar

Tuneshine is different from most audio-related technology, especially because it doesn’t play any audio, but rather presents the music you’re listening to in a compelling visual format. The square 64×64 pixel screen displays album art in a unique way and increases the physical space you have to place it without looking overbearing.

It gives you a nice, passive experience with the music, it adds some enhancements to the music, but it doesn’t require you to interact with it in a new way.

“I realized that a certain type of screen and form factor seemed to be ideal for music listening use cases because it didn’t really demand your attention, unlike the screens you normally use on phones and computers” in the same way. It gives you a nice, passive experience with the music, it adds a little bit of enhancement to the music, but it doesn’t require you to interact with it in a new way,” Butler said.

Express yourself with furniture and technology

A product as unique as the Tuneshine, and designed with such care, sends the message that the product, and by extension the Butler, were created as a whole.

“I think a lot of the technology we use is ephemeral, comes and goes, is kind of anonymous.

“I would say I’m trying to make some comprehensive statements, both in terms of product design and how I run the business,” Butler said. “I think a lot of the technology we use is ephemeral, comes and goes, is kind of anonymous. [New] Cell phones all look the same. “

It’s clear that Tuneshine is more focused on being a beautiful product that brings personality to your surroundings, rather than mass-producing something with profit as the primary concern.

“I wouldn’t say what I’m doing is necessarily revolutionary, but I would say, well, if instead of raising a bunch of money and trying to use something like, ‘Well, if you just say, ‘Okay , it’s a good thing, you can buy it, and I’m selling it for less than what it costs to keep this business going. “

A standalone product but with the potential to evolve

One thing Butler plans to do with Tuneshine in the near future is launch limited editions using different cases made by Joinery Structures.

​​​​​“I do want it to feel more like furniture than technology, which is kind of funny because from those two words, furniture sounds like a more ‘boring’ thing. But I think there’s a Something timeless, about it truly fitting your personal style rather than an anonymous glass rectangle.”

I currently have a Tuneshine at home, and I can attest that it subtly adds color to my environment without overwhelming it, and that it adds something personal to my space.

Beyond that, while it’s certainly possible that Tuneshine could have different features, such as adding speakers or making it Bluetooth compatible, Butler wants to focus on making the current product standalone. “I had a lot of potential in the first version, so I’m going to stick with it for a while,” Butler said.

Ultimately, Butler’s intuition and vision for Tuneshine in both a business and design sense aligned with his goal of creating something beyond just another anonymous screen.

Regardless of if and when Butler adds more content to Tuneshine or improves functionality while sticking to traditional design, there’s no denying that it’s a unique piece of furniture and technology that can easily be combined with a love of music and well-crafted objects. Find a place in people’s homes. Tuneshin is for those who want to add some personality to their living space without being overbearing. I currently have a Tuneshine at home, and I can attest that it subtly adds color to my environment without overwhelming it, and that it adds something personal to my space. With beautifully crafted woods and thoughtful design, I think Tuneshine is a huge step forward in blending technology and artistry.