Qualcomm has introduced aptX Lossless, a new feature of Snapdragon Sound Technology that is designed to offer lossless audio streaming for Bluetooth-enabled wireless earphones and headphones.
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The California-based firm said that aptX Lossless can deliver CD quality 16-bit 44.1kHz lossless audio quality over Bluetooth when a user is listening to a lossless music file and the radio frequency (RF) conditions are suitable.
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Lossless audio produces exact bit-for-bit output without any loss of audio file.
“Currently lossless audio is only supported on client devices such as phones, PCs and tablets,” James Chapman, VP and GM at Qualcomm, said in a statement. "By supporting lossless audio on next-gen earbuds and headphones, we’re providing our customers another way to deliver sound the way the artist intended.”
The company’s aptX Lossless, which is a new capability of the aptX Adaptive technology, works in conjunction with Qualcomm Bluetooth High Speed Link technology to help deliver the required quantity of data.
These technologies are said to deliver rates up to 1Mbit/s and also smoothly scale down to 140kbits/s in congested RF environments to minimise any audio dropouts or glitches for a consistent listening experience, the chipmaker noted.
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The new technology can auto-detect to enable CD lossless audio when people are listening to lossless music files. It also allows them to select between CD lossless audio 16-bit 44.1kHz and 24-bit 96kHz lossy.
Qualcomm’s announcement comes after tech giants Apple and Amazon made some changes to their music streaming services by allowing users to stream high-quality lossless audio at no additional cost. Meanwhile, there is also a rise in the adoption of wireless earwear devices .
