I built physical album cards with NFC tags to teach my son music discovery

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

DIY and Technical Approaches

  • Many commenters have built similar systems: NFC or RFID cards triggering Plex, Jellyfin, MPD, VLC, Sonos, Home Assistant, or Phoniebox-style Raspberry Pi jukeboxes.
  • Alternatives to NFC are mentioned: QR-code cards, floppy disks with playlists, SD cards per album, and even hacked Fisher-Price record players.
  • Several note that writable NFC tags are cheap and easily programmed from a phone; one complaint is that the article focuses more on card design than on NFC wiring, flashing, costs, and hardware detail.
  • Some plan or have built “MTV-like” channels or album players using YouTube downloads and apps like quasiTV.

Comparisons to Yoto, Tonies, and Other Products

  • The project is often likened to a DIY Yoto / Toniebox / similar German RFID jukeboxes.
  • Owners praise those devices for giving kids agency without screens, but criticize high card prices, lack of direct Spotify integration, and cloud dependence.
  • There’s interest in reverse-engineering Yoto/Tonies to use local storage, home servers, or custom URLs; some progress on dumping firmware and mapping APIs is reported.

Physicality, Nostalgia, and Kids’ Music Discovery

  • Many resonate with the goal: counter “formless” streaming by giving kids tactile ways to browse, select, and “own” albums, akin to flipping through LPs or CDs, trading tapes, or exploring a parent’s collection.
  • Others suggest simpler routes: buy a CD player or vinyl and take kids to used music shops or flea markets.
  • Several describe kids quickly engaging with physical media (Yoto cards, CDs, records, NFC toys) and even becoming “little DJs.”

Streaming vs Ownership and Intentional Listening

  • One camp argues streaming/“all the music” makes everything interchangeable, encourages passive background listening, and weakens attachment to albums.
  • Another camp counters that modern tools (Spotify radios, related artists, playlists) enable deeper intentional discovery than radio/CD eras, and that teens today still build strong musical identities.
  • Extended subthread debates whether today’s landscape (including AI-generated “slop”) worsens or improves things compared with past scarcity.

Legal and Practical Concerns

  • Some ask how people source DRM-free audio (ripping CDs vs. re-buying downloads vs. grey areas around streaming).
  • Others downplay legal worries for personal, in-home use, while a few highlight stricter jurisdictions.

Reception and Critique

  • Most responses are enthusiastic, praising the parenting angle, aesthetics, and low cost.
  • A minority see the narrative as nostalgic or sanctimonious, or as imposing a parent’s tastes, though others defend it as a loving, playful project rather than a manifesto.