Build your own in-car entertainment system — individual touch displays for each passenger, streaming multimedia over a local network with no internet required. Using off-the-shelf hardware and open-source software, each screen costs around $180–$200.
Complete wiring diagram: PoE switch powers each Raspberry Pi + touch screen over a single Ethernet cable.
How it works
The system uses a distributed architecture — no central multi-head controller needed. Each passenger screen is an independent Raspberry Pi 4 running Kodi, powered and networked through a single Ethernet cable via Power over Ethernet (PoE). A pocket router acts as the DLNA/DHCP server, serving media files from a USB drive to all screens on the local network.
What you need
| Component | Role |
| PoE switch | Powers and networks all Raspberry Pi screens over single Ethernet cables |
| GL-MT300N-V2 pocket router | DLNA media server + DHCP server (see pocket router DLNA guide) |
| Raspberry Pi 4 + PoE HAT | Media player endpoint (one per passenger screen) |
| Full HD touch display | Passenger-facing screen (one per seat) |
| USB media drive | Stores multimedia files, plugged into the pocket router |
Why this architecture
- Single-cable per screen — PoE eliminates separate power cables, simplifying in-car wiring
- Distributed decoding — each Raspberry Pi handles its own multimedia decoding and rendering, so there is no central bottleneck
- Easily scalable — add more screens by swapping in a PoE switch with more ports
- Fully offline — works in areas with no mobile coverage; all content is served locally
- Individual or shared playback — each passenger can browse and play their own content, or all screens can be synchronized
Cost per screen
Each passenger display costs approximately $180–$200, including the Raspberry Pi 4, PoE HAT, and a full HD touch screen. The PoE switch and pocket router are shared across all screens.
Software stack
- Kodi — open-source media player running on each Raspberry Pi, with DLNA client support built in
- OpenWrt + minidlna — runs on the pocket router, serving media files over DLNA
- Raspberry Pi OS — base operating system for the Pi endpoints
For the DLNA server setup on the pocket router, see the companion post: Transforming Your GL-MT300N-V2 Pocket Router into a DLNA Multimedia Server.
SOURCE CODE
github.com/hackboxguy/multiscreen-media — step-by-step build guide and configuration
2 comments:
What model # is the display?
Its Wstirhy 14 Inch Portable Monitor USB C 1920 x 1080p IPS Screen Portable HDMI Monitor with Two Speakers Mobile Monitor for PC Laptop Xbox PS4/5 Switch
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