Tuneshine is the new smart speaker on the block — and it's bringing album covers back

One of the few casualties of the techification of music is undoubtedly the lost art of album covers. They’ve somehow fallen into that crater between retro and modern. On your retro side, you’ve still got the analogue kids with their records, turntables, tapes and collectable band tees. On the modern side, you’ve got audio-enhancing soundbars, speakers that resemble balloon dogs, and $15,000 Hermes headphones.

There have been some truly iconic album covers, too - Abbey Road, Nevermind, and Unknown Pleasures, to name a few. But is that sort of getting lost amongst all the digital streaming? The last time people were talking about album covers was probably thanks to Sabrina Carpenter — and maybe for the wrong reasons.

Luckily, the new tech kid on the block, Tuneshine, is officially bringing album covers back. The new company - founded by a software engineer and former staffer at Change.org - has created a low-res LED screen which has been designed to artfully display album covers whilst you’re streaming from a mobile device.

Unlike some similar-ish products on the market, which will show a digital LED screen (you’ve got your fish tank images, your rotating picture slideshow frames, and your lightbox art etc), these speakers exclusively show the album cover for the track you’re playing. It’s connected via smartphone to key streamers including Spotify, Apple Music, and Sonos, so there’s no need to go downloading yet another app. It can also use Shazam, meaning it can determine what you’re playing on a regular format-focused hifi system and show the corresponding art, of course.

It’s only 6.3 inches square, so it’s definitely on the minimalist side, meaning it blends in pretty seamlessly with your home decor. It won’t take up much room wherever you want to display it, and as it’s all mounted with a wooden frame, it doesn’t look as speaker-esque as speakers usually do. If you’re up close, your view will definitely be more pixelated, but from a distance you’ll get the album cover in all its Britpop glory.

Like all of the best inventions, the creation of the Tuneshine was almost accidental, with founder Tobias Butler originally making one just to see if it could be done. Luckily, he created 1,000 more pretty quickly to keep up with demand once word got out. And, he’s not done designing, as he has hopes to expand the range with new colours and materials. Obviously, the artwork itself will always be churning out new versions.

The LED panel used in the Tuneshine is rated for 100,000 hours of use—over 11 years, so it should last pretty well, provided you don't drop it and break it. Although if you do break the LED panel, it can be replaced, so it's not a dealbreaker (or speaker-breaker). They're available directly from Turnshine and are currently listed at $199.99 - although this doesn't include shipping to the UK, so the total cost will probably be a little more.

• The year's most stylish tech has just been revealed at major awards