You may want to hold off buying any Bluetooth audio devices. The specifications are about to get a major upgrade.
Yesterday at the CES tradeshow, the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) announced the upcoming release of LE Audio, the next generation of Bluetooth audio. In addition to improving the quality of the transmitted audio, LE Audio adds the ability to share audio among nearby devices. There’s also native support for hearing aids.
Low Complexity Communication Codec for Higher Quality and Lower Power
A new Low Complexity Communication Codec (LC3) allows lower power consumption, even when transmitting high-quality audio.
“Extensive listening tests have shown that LC3 will provide improvements in audio quality over the SBC codec included with Classic Audio, even at a 50% lower bit rate,” said Manfred Lutzky, Head of Audio for Communications at Fraunhofer IIS. “Developers will be able to leverage this power savings to create products that can provide longer battery life or, in cases where current battery life is enough, reduce the form factor by using a smaller battery.”
Multi-Stream Audio for Better Performing Earbuds
With Multi-Stream Audio, Bluetooth will enable the transmission of multiple, independent, synchronized audio streams between an audio source device, such as a smartphone, and one or more audio sink devices.
“Developers will be able to use the Multi-Stream Audio feature to improve the performance of products like truly wireless earbuds,” said Nick Hunn, CTO of WiFore Consulting and Chair of the Bluetooth SIG Hearing Aid Working Group. “For example, they can provide a better stereo imaging experience, make the use of voice assistant services more seamless, and make switching between multiple audio source devices smoother.”
Broadcast Audio for Audio Sharing
With Broadcast Audio, an audio source device can broadcast one or more audio streams to an unlimited number of audio sink devices. Bluetooth Audio Sharing can be personal or location-based. With personal Audio Sharing, people will be able to share their Bluetooth audio experience with others around them; for example, sharing music from a smartphone with family and friends. With location-based Audio Sharing, public venues such as airports, bars, gyms, cinemas, and conference centers can now share Bluetooth audio that augments the visitor experience.
“Location-based Audio Sharing holds the potential to change the way we experience the world around us,” said Peter Liu of Bose Corporation and member of the Bluetooth SIG Board of Directors. “For example, people will be able to select the audio being broadcast by silent TVs in public venues, and places like theaters and lecture halls will be able to share audio to assist visitors with hearing loss as well as provide audio in multiple languages.”
Availability
The Bluetooth specifications that define LE Audio are expected to be released throughout the first half of 2020. By the end of the year, you can expect to see some new Bluetooth devices that make use of the LE Audio specifications. A broader range of devices should be available in time for CES 2021.