Jan 6, 2020 LAS VEGAS

Qualcomm Technologies International, Ltd., a subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated introduces Qualcomm Voice audio, a new voice codec that provides high definition voice quality over a connection using Bluetooth wireless technology. Voice intelligibility and understanding are key to seamless communication over the phone and aptX Voice, a new feature of Qualcomm's Adaptive audio technology, is designed to significantly improve the quality of voice for those using Bluetooth accessories to make voice calls.

Today, super wideband voice codecs are used by providers to enhance call quality on mobile networks, which means that many consumers are already enjoying high quality voice calls on their mobile devices. However, when they connect accessories that support the Bluetooth Handsfree Profile to make and receive voice calls, they aren’t experiencing the same HD voice quality. In the same way that aptX was designed to improve the quality of music streaming over Bluetooth wireless technology, aptX Voice has been designed to improve the voice call experience by delivering 32kHz voice call quality within the Bluetooth Handsfree Profile so consumers can experience crystal clear voice calls.

"€œaptX technology revolutionized the Bluetooth stereo listening experience by bringing unprecedented wireless audio quality, and aptX Voice is set to do the same for voice calls,"€ said James Chapman, vice president and general manager, Voice, Music and Wearables, Qualcomm Technologies International, Ltd. "As consumers increasingly use wireless headsets and earbuds for making and receiving calls, aptX Voice is the answer to ensuring higher clarity and quality of call experience."

Consumers are embracing Bluetooth wireless technology while increasingly demanding higher quality audio for both voice calls and music listening. For voice calls, today's narrowband and wideband codecs used within the Bluetooth Handsfree Profile can sometimes result in indistinguishable voices, muddled words, the inability to distinguish from background noise and ultimately listener fatigue. aptX Voice can provide for a better user call experience by improving the overall voice quality, thus putting less strain on the listener, particularly in environments such as call centers and other enterprise applications.

aptX Voice is designed to deliver 32kHz sampled audio with a flat 16kHz frequency response, providing the HD quality that consumers have come to expect from the aptX family of audio codecs. The clarity provided by aptX Voice technology:

• Delivers greater clarity and speech intelligibility as well as clearer overall sound quality than narrow or wideband voice codecs used within the Bluetooth Handsfree Profile
• Improves understanding by making it easier to recognize voices, distinguish confusing sounds and understand accented speakers
• Provides ease of deciphering words that have similar sounds which are often indistinguishable over telephone lines
• Gives the consumer the ability to hear faint talkers and to understand double-talk - when more than one person is talking at the same time
• Allows better understanding with other impairments, such as when talkers are using a speakerphone or in the presence of background noise

The new technology is available now on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 and Qualcomm Snapdragon 765 Mobile Platforms and will be available for accessories when based on Qualcomm Technologies new range of Bluetooth Audio SoCs to be launched in 2020.