| The following guide is based on [link|https://www.youtube.com/@DammitJeff|Dammit Jeff's|new_window=true] video [link|https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQVuGeoqyUc|'Spotify Bricked the Car Thing, So I hacekd Mine'|new_window=true], along with the incredible work of [link|https://github.com/bishopdynamics|Bishopdynamics|new_window=true], and [link|https://github.com/ItsRiprod|ItsRiprod|new_window=true] on Github. |
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| == A Brief History of Car Thing == |
| Spotify's Car Thing was a specialized device created for Spotify Premium users with older vehicles without CarPlay or Android Auto to provide easy access to their favorite music and podcasts while driving. |
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| Originally announced in May 2019, Car Thing was ultimately discontinued in July 2022. Then in May 2024, Spotify announced that the device would stop functioning on December 9, 2024. |
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| It was discovered that the Car Thing’s hardware could be made open to custom firmware, extending its lifespan beyond Spotify’s ecosystem. By installing this firmware, users can prolong the Car Thing’s operational life, preventing it from becoming e-waste. This guide shows how to install the firmware even after the device’s official deactivation. |
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| == Tools Needed == |
| * [link|https://www.python.org/downloads/|python3|new_window=true] |
| * [link|https://github.com/libusb/libusb/releases|libusb|new_window=true] |
| * [link|https://github.com/superna9999/pyamlboot|pyamlboot|new_window=true] You will need to install it from the GitHub master branch. This is necessary because the current pypy package is outdated and lacks the ``bulkcmd`` functionality. |