Anyone with wireless earbuds of some description will already know that the Bluetooth connection between their ‘buds and source device isn’t always reliable if the two aren’t together. Nor is it particularly good at delivering high-quality audio compared to what you get over a cable.
That makes a lot of sense considering the power limitations of wireless earbuds – a Wi-Fi connection draws too much power so we’ve been kinda stuck with Bluetooth. Until Qualcomm announced the Snapdragon S7+ Gen 1 sound platform in 2023.
We’re still mostly stuck with Bluetooth for our mobile audio connections but that shouldn’t be the case for long.
Taking your earbuds further
The S7+ Gen 1 sound platform leverages Qualcomm’s XPAN (Expanded Personal Arena Network) technology. It allows a wireless connection between a source device, like a smartphone or laptop, and the playback device, wireless earbuds in this case, to seamlessly switch between Bluetooth and Wi-Fi as needed.
Not only does this mean you’ll be able to roam further away from your source device without losing connection since Wi-Fi offers far greater range than Bluetooth, but it also allows for lossless 24-bit/96kHz audio with the same power consumption as Qualcomm’s current 96kHz lossy standard. The cherry on top is it won’t make you pick between high-quality audio and a low-latency connection, a boon for mobile gamers.
Both devices will need to be on the same Wi-Fi network, of course, and sport Qualcomm chips on both ends of the connection – a Snapdragon chipset in your smartphone, tablet, or laptop, and earbuds compatible with the S7+ Gen 1 sound platform.
Qualcomm said at the time that compatible wireless earbuds would arrive in 2024 but last year came and went without said ‘buds materialising. Android Authority recently reached out to Qualcomm to ask about XPAN devices and received the following reply:
“We’re excited to be collaborating with several of our customers to bring the first devices with XPAN to market, and these will be announced very, very soon.”
That’s two ‘very’s by our count so it’s probably safe to assume we should see XPAN-enabled earbuds before the end of the year, maybe even in the first half. You’ll be the first to know when we get our hands on some.
