Looking for mobile phones with aptX Adaptive can be a tedious job. I know, because I am forever hunting for them each time I have to replace my smartphone. Why is this so? Why are aptX Adaptive phones so hard to find?
Similar to the way cable Internet is more reliable and stable than wireless Internet, Bluetooth audio has traditionally delivered inferior audio quality compared to what you get via wired headphones. aptX Adaptive is a Bluetooth audio codec designed by Qualcomm Incorporated to fix this problem and bridge the gap, so you can enjoy low latency, top quality audio via your Bluetooth headphones or earbuds when listening to music or watching video. And they succeeded.
In simple, layman’s terms, aptX Adaptive audio is one of a number of Qualcomm technologies that deliver sound quality that is comparable to what you get using wired headphones. This is fantastic news, and you would expect that many smartphone manufacturers would jump on it. Unfortunately, that is not so. At least, for now. Only a handful of aptX Adaptive phones exist and it is my opinion that the manufacturers who shy away from the codec do so to avoid paying licensing fees.
The major phone brands are trying to corner the market with their own homegrown solutions or already invested in alternative solutions. Apple has AAC and uses that in their iPhones. Samsung is using AAC and Scalable Codec. LDAC, developed by Sony, is really great at streaming high quality audio but thankfully Sony is well involved with aptX Adaptive.
aptX Adaptive audio is a good balance between compression and audio quality and delivers solid sound quality. This is why it is the recommended codec to look for when choosing a smartphone and Bluetooth headphones or earbuds for music lovers. Let’s dive into the lists of mobile phones with aptX Adaptive.
Table of Contents
Nokia Phones With aptX Adaptive
- Nokia XR21
- Nokia G50
- Nokia G60 5G
- Nokia X30 5G
- Nokia XR20
- Nokia X20
- Nokia G400 5G
- Nokia G100
- Nokia X10
- Nokia 5.4
- Nokia 3.4
Sony Xperia Phones With aptX Adaptive
Despite being behind LDAC, Sony is moving strong with aptX Adaptive. Here are some phones with aptX Adaptive from Sony:
- Sony Xperia 1 IV
- Sony Xperia 5 IV
- Sony Xperia 10 V
- Sony Xperia 10 IV
Asus Phones With aptX Adaptive
Asus is heavily invested in aptX Adaptive audio codec, especially because they make phones targeted at gamers and music lovers.
- Asus Zenfone 10
- Asus Zenfone 9
- Asus ROG Phone 7 Ultimate
- Asus ROG Phone 7
- Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro
- Asus ROG Phone 6
- Asus ROG Phone 5s
- Asus ROG Phone 5 Ultimate
- Asus Zenfone 8
- Asus Zenfone 8 Flip
- Asus Zenfone 7 Pro
- Asus Smartphone for Snapdragon Insiders
- Asus Zenfone 7
TCL Phones That Have aptX Adaptive
- TCL 20 5G
BlackShark Phones With aptX Adaptive
- BlackShark 5 Pro
Samsung phones with aptX Adaptive
There are no aptX Adaptive phones from Samsung at this time. Not even any of their Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S24 premium flagships.
Apple iPhones That Have aptX Adaptive
There are no iPhones that have aptX Adaptive audio. See our related article on Bluetooth Codecs in Apple iPhone 13.
Google Pixel Phones With aptX Adaptive
Unfortunately, not one Google Pixel phone supports aptX Adaptive audio at this time.
OnePlus aptX Adaptive phones
- OnePlus 8T.
OnePlus has products with aptX and aptx HD, but only one model has the more groundbreaking Adaptive – the 8T from some years ago. It looks like OnePlus experimented with the codec that one time and decided it wasn’t worth their time.
Motorola phones with aptX Adaptive
Motorola seems to have fully thrown in their lot with aptX Adaptive, as they have a fairly large catalogue of aptX Adaptive phones.
- Motorola Edge+ 2023
- Motorola Moto G50
- Motorola Moto G Power 5G
- Motorola Moto X40
- Motorola Moto Razr 40 Ultra
- Motorola Moto G53 5G
- ThinkPhone by Motorola
- Motorola Edge 30 Neo
- Motorola Edge 30 Fusion
- Motorola Moto S30 Pro
- Motorola Moto X30 Pro
The above-listed 42 aptX Adaptive phones are not exhaustive, as new phones are being released every other week. I might not be able to keep up with all of them for the purpose of updating these lists. However, from the above lists, you can tell which phone manufacturers to look to for aptX Adaptive support. Asus is one, Nokia is another, Motorola, and last but not the least, Sony.
A caveat: Qualcomm is the source of the information used in drawing up this list. However, I cannot guarantee that the list is 100% valid. For example, I own a Nokia 5.4 and I dived into the settings to confirm whether aptX Adaptive is supported. I found the option grayed out, with a footnote saying that a grayout means the feature is not supported. I find that odd. I am not sure what is behind that, but if I do find out, I will update this article. In the meantime, take the above lists of supported phones as a guide and ask your own questions when shopping.
PS: if you love aptX Adaptive, you will love aptX Snapdragon Sound.