You, too, can make this ESP32-S3 internet radio with a touchscreen world map to surf the planet

One of the most exciting aspects of internet radio is the ability to access stations from around the world. For those who desire a hands-on experience, a tinkerer has created an ESP32-S3 device with a touchscreen that allows users to explore a world map and listen to radio stations from different countries. The project, showcased on the ESP32 subreddit by Adrian Cubas, is an innovative way to delve into global culture through music.

Cubas' radio features a touchscreen with a world map, enabling users to tap on a country and hear a radio station originating from that location. The tinkerer aimed to make the project more user-friendly and visually appealing than a long list of station options. In their design, they utilized LVGL 8 + LovyanGFX for the user interface, ESP32-audioI2S for MP3/AAC streams, and LittleFS for storing the station list which can be updated wirelessly from GitHub Pages without requiring a reflash.

The project utilizes over 3,700 radio stations sourced from radio-browser.info, with the station list being filtered and tested on a PC before deployment onto the device. A notable challenge encountered during development was dealing with the website zeno.fm, which required a User-Agent header in requests to avoid a 401 error. To address this issue, Cubas modified the library to include a User-Agent header when communicating with zeno.fm.

This comprehensive project is available for further exploration on GitHub and a build guide is provided for those interested in recreating the setup at home.