Qualcomm's Snapdragon Sound promises to cure your Bluetooth blues
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Qualcomm's Snapdragon Sound promises to cure your Bluetooth blues
Say goodbye to Bluetooth audio latency when gaming or watching YouTube
We all know Bluetooth audio latency is terrible whether you’re watching YouTube videos that are out of sync or when you’re mid-game with laggy sound. Well, Qualcomm is on a mission to change things with high quality, low-latency audio through Snapdragon Sound.
Snapdragon Sound is a new audio platform that promises to deliver low-latency audio over Bluetooth that is “optimized for gaming.” According to Qualcomm, its new platform reduces latency below 20ms for essentially lag-free gaming audio – and that extends to streaming media and music as well.
The biggest problem with any new platform is getting hardware to support it. So Qualcomm has introduced a new Snapdragon Sound S3 Gen 2 chipset (currently in the form of a USB-C dongle) that can make any laptop, PC, Mac, Nintendo Switch, Steam Deck, or any USB-C equipped device Snapdragon Sound-compatible.
On the headphone front, Qualcomm showed us a pair of Nubia Audio Apply Plus II True earbuds that already support Snapdragon Sound. The platform also has a few major audio companies backing it including Audio-Technica, Bose, and Nura. So, we’re hoping there won’t be a shortage of headphone and earbud options that will work with Snapdragon Sound.
Beyond gaming, Snapdragon Sound also supports hi-res music streaming at up to 24-bit, 96kHz over Bluetooth and Qualcomm’s aptX Adaptive codec. The technology also supports Auracast broadcasting so you can share the same Bluetooth audio with multiple devices. Qualcomm told us it hopes to bring this solution to airports and other public venues with shared screens, making it easier than ever to tune in to a sporting event at your favorite bar top.
Kevin Lee is The Shortcut’s Creative Director. Follow him on Twitter @baggingspam.
Qualcomm's Snapdragon Sound promises to cure your Bluetooth blues
😍 Could it be?!
All my devices ... TV, consoles, PC ... are wired to a bluetooth A/V receiver but the technology to listen wirelessly with one headset and low latency doesn't exist. Could this be it?
I like that there's a dongle option. I can use this until I get a phone that supports it, then use the dongle on my PS5 (thanks to the birth of Shortcut!) or TV for better a wireless option.