Bluetooth aptX (HD) is now being heard more and more often, but many people are unclear as to what the term actually stands for. We explain to you what the term stands for.
AptX improves the transmission of audio signals via Bluetooth. (Source: Vadymvdrobot/depositphotos.com)
There are a large number of different models, manufacturers and brands in the headphone and speaker market, each touting their own technologies or features. One of these newer features is the so-called Bluetooth codec aptX.
What is aptX?
AptX stands for Audio Processing Technology and is a so-called audio codec. This is a pair of algorithms that encodes and decodes audio signals. In principle, it is a technology that improves the transmission of signals, which in turn are converted into sounds. This improves the overall sound, since more details can be conveyed.
How does aptX work?
Bluetooth establishes a connection between two devices and provides a certain bandwidth for the transmission of data and signals. The aptX codec makes much better use of this bandwidth, since the compression performance is a lot better than with conventional connections. This allows more complex sounds to be transmitted and played. The normal data transfer rate with aptX is a fixed value of 354 kbit/s and with aptX HD it is 576 kbit/s.
What conditions must be met for an aptX transfer?
In order for an aptX stream to be established, both the playback device and the transmitter must support Bluetooth aptX. Whether this is the case can usually be found out in the data sheet of the respective device. Since aptX was bought by Qulacomm a few years ago, the Bluetooth standard can actually be found in all smartphones and tablets with a chipset from the manufacturer. In addition, most modern Bluetooth headphones also have aptX. The aptX codec is able to transfer all common MP3 formats as well as the high-resolution FLAC format.
What is aptX HD?
The quality gets even better with the already mentioned aptX HD. Compression performance becomes even more efficient here and, while this is very rare, connection dropouts are even rarer. According to Qualcomm, the quality of the audio should even be comparable to that of CDs. The problem here, however, is that very few devices have this standard, which makes everyday use rather difficult.
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