Qualcomm S7 Pro, Micro-Power Wi-Fi, and XPAN Technology

Qualcomm S7 Pro, Micro-Power Wi-Fi, and XPAN Technology. An interview with John Turner, Senior Director, Product Management Voice and Music at Qualcomm Technologies International about the new Qualcomm S7 Pro platform that brings micro-power Wi-Fi and Bluetooth LE Audio to TWS earbuds. The same battery life, much better quality, high-res lossless audio, longer range, same user experience as Bluetooth on TWS earbuds. How does it work?

Analog Devices is now sampling its latest audio processor and low power ANC codec, the ADAU1797. This high-performance device with integrated HiFi 3z and FastDSP cores is able to efficiently support front-end audio processing with beamforming and noise reduction, as well as neural network-assisted speech recognition (ASR) processing. An ideal, low latency, low power, three times more powerful processor for true wireless stereo (TWS) ANC earbuds and headphones.

Expanding the perspective on the evolution toward hearables, this article explores the current trends as well as the acoustical challenges and solutions for designing true wireless earphones. The article explains the enabling technologies currently converging as the TWS market continues to grow and use cases multiply, with more consumers using wireless earbuds for a diverse and varied set of applications, from listening to podcasts and audiobooks to Internet meetings and interacting with voice assistants. This article was originally published in audioXpress, April 2022.

7 Sensing Software, a company working in advanced embedded audio DSP and machine learning solutions, announced that it has entered into a collaboration with Analog Devices, Inc. The two companies are working together to incorporate 7 Sensing’s state-of-the-art audio solutions for wireless earbuds and headsets embedded into Analog Devices’ recently expanded family of low power codecs. 7 Sensing's Pure Voice solution and Hearing Augmentation suite will expand Analog Device's hardware platform with a valuable, differentiated feature set for manufacturers and brands.

Demand for True Wireless Stereo (TWS) products reflect the growing demand for multi-function, health care, and connected wearable solutions, all requiring smaller and longer battery life devices. Asahi Kasei Microdevices (AKM) has recently introduced the AKM AK4336ECB ultra low power audio codec, a 4-channel ADC and one channel DAC that supports active noise cancelling designs, complementing its complete portfolio of audio systems and sensors for TWS development.

Synopsys announced that DSP Group selected Synopsys DesignWare ARC EM5D Processor IP for its high-efficiency control and signal processing capabilities to enable development of its DBMC2-TWS advanced adaptive processing audio codec for true wireless stereo (TWS) headsets. To dynamically configure settings and filter parameters on-the-fly, the DBMC2-TWS integrates an ARC EM5D processor, abundant internal memory and numerous digital interfaces.

Dialog Semiconductor announced the DA740x, a family of highly-integrated audio codec chips that deliver best-in-class active noise cancellation (ANC), providing optimal audio performance in any environment to the rapidly-growing wireless headphones market. According to the British semiconductor company, the DA740x chips are able to deliver superior active noise cancellation – no matter how noisy the environment – with twice the audio quality and half the power consumption as competitive solutions.