It doesn’t matter what you spend on a Bluetooth headset: they will be limited by the big “bottleneck” that is this connection. The problem reaches such heights that there are already brands like Razer betting on wireless headphones that do not use Bluetooth, but a faster 2.GHz wireless connection.
The big problem with Bluetooth is that it was never designed to transfer a large amount of data, and it is only used because it was the only option available on all devices. But today, it’s totally unable to keep up with the high-definition music users want to hear.
Although there are already plans to improve Bluetooth, Qualcomm has meanwhile presented an alternative, a new chip that will allow better quality, and above all, lower latency in sound.
The new sound chip
the new platform Qualcomm S3 Gen 2 introduced today blends Snapdragon Sound technology, already present in some Android phones, and Bluetooth LE Audio for wireless, lag-free high-quality audio, which will be especially useful for gamers or users who want an identical experience to that of the thread.
Latency is one of those things that can destroy the experience. It’s the time that elapses between when we see what’s happening on the screen and when we hear it in the headphones; although it is not a very large time difference, between 100 and 300 milliseconds, it is enough to notice how the sound is “delayed”, as if things sounded later than they should. For players, more than an annoyance, it’s something that makes it impossible to play properly, since they depend on sound to make decisions (for example, if they hear an enemy nearby).
The new Snapdragon S3 Gen 2 platform
Qualcomm’s solution is familiar: a chip that can be installed in a USB-C adapter, and which promises to get latency less than 20 milliseconds, low enough to deliver both game audio and voice chat; although if we deactivate the latter, the company claims that the sound of the game is much closer to the experience with the cables. In fact, Qualcomm claims to have achieved the best wireless gaming headset experience yet, which fits the bill: so far, the aptX Low Latency codec was the best in this regard, with latency around 40ms.
In addition, the new platform is compatible with Auracast, an alternative to Chromecast that also allows send sound to external devices such as televisions, speakers, computers and consoles, to an “unlimited” number of receivers. This can be particularly useful, for example, for public events or simply for sharing music with friends. Speaking of music, Qualcomm promises “audiophile quality”, and in combination with the aptX Lossless codec, it promises CD-quality music.
As of now, no device using Qualcomm S3 Gen 2 has been unveiled, but hopefully it won’t be long if the company has already made this data public.
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