As an audiophile, I am particular about the audio on my smartphones and audio accessories. I want the best possible audio, whether it is from the loudspeakers or from wired and wireless earbuds, from my mobile devices.
This is why I am interested in stereo speakers, as well as wireless audio codecs and standards like aptX, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive, and others. And it is why, when I heard of Snapdragon Sound, I took an immediate interest.
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What is Snapdragon Sound?
Snapdragon Sound is a relatively new high quality audio technology developed by American technology company, Qualcomm, for smartphones, wireless earbuds, wireless headsets, and laptops. It was launched in 2021.
Being a Qualcomm product, it is available only to smartphones that use compatible Snapdragon chipsets. However, note that it is not available on all Qualcomm-powered devices. It is available on smartphones with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, laptops using the Snapdragon X Elite platform, and audio accessories using the Snapdragon S7 series.
Features and benefits
Lossless audio, spatial audio, low latency, and high quality audio clarity are some of the features of the technology.
- Lossless Music: It supports lossless and high-resolution music streaming, allowing you to hear every note and nuance as the artist intended.
- Spatial Audio: Snapdragon Sound enables immersive audio experiences with head-tracking spatial audio, enhancing the feeling of being in the center of the sound.
- Robust Connectivity: By utilizing Qualcomm Bluetooth High Speed Link technology, it provides robust Bluetooth connections without audio drop-outs or glitching.
- Low Latency: It offers ultra-low latency for gaming and voice calls, ensuring a lag-free experience.
- Crystal Clear Calls: The technology supports super wideband voice for voice and video calls, making conversations clearer.
Bitrate and latency
For our more technical readers who understand things like bitrate and latency, here’s what you need to know:
- Bitrate: Snapdragon Sound supports 24-bit 96kHz audio over Bluetooth, which is a high-resolution audio quality. It utilizes the aptX Adaptive codec technology, where the bitrate scales dynamically from 279kbps up to 860kbps. This allows for near-lossless audio quality that’s quite close to what you’d get with wired headphones. Pretty much, it is backwards compatible with aptX Adaptive, which is a good thing.
- Latency: The technology achieves ultra-low latencies, as low as 89ms, which is significantly lower than many other audio solutions. This low latency is perfect for syncing audio with video and gaming, providing a seamless experience without noticeable delays. Smartphone gamers will find this feature helpful, as it reduces the lag in audio over wireless headsets. Of course, you will experience less lag even when on a telephone call and using compatible Bluetooth earbuds or headsets.
How it works
Note that to enjoy the benefits of Snapdragon Sound, both devices have to support it. This means that both your earbuds or headphones and the smartphone or laptop you are connecting them to must support the technology.
If only one end of the wireless connection supports it, you will not be able to enjoy the features and benefits we have discussed above.
Compatible phones
Some smartphones that support Snapdragon Sound include the Nothing Phone 2, ASUS ROG Phone 8 series, Xiaomi 14 series, Motorola Moto G24 and Moto G24 Power.
Supported earbuds and headphones
There are several earbuds that are compatible with Snapdragon Sound, offering the premium audio experience that this technology is known for. Here are some models:
- Edifier STAX SPIRIT S5
- Cleer Ally Plus II Earbuds
- Goertek ROX Earbuds
- Xiaomi FlipBuds Pro
- Bose Ultra Open Earbuds
- Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II
- Denon Perl Pro Earbuds
- Audio-Technica Earbuds
Does iPhone support Snapdragon Sound?
Apple iPhones do not support Snapdragon Sound, because the technology is available only to devices that use a Qualcomm Snapdragon chipset. iPhones use Apple chipsets.
Do Samsung phones support Snapdragon Sound?
While Samsung has released some smartphones using compatible Snapdragon chipsets, there are no Samsung Galaxy phones using the new technology yet. Ideally, the Samsung Galaxy S24 series should support the technology, since they use the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, but Samsung clearly didn’t enable the feature.
Snapdragon Sound is supported by the following brands
To help you narrow down your search for supported devices, there are some brands that have a reputation for releasing compatible devices. They include:
- Xiaomi
- Motorola
- Nothing
- ASUS
- Red Magic
- Huawei
- Nokia
- OnePlus
- OPPO
- Vivo
If you want a Snapdragon Sound compatible device, look at the most recent products from the above brands. You will likely find a few that meet your needs.
Let me know if my article has helped you. Also, if I left anything out, please point it out and ask me about it in the comment section below; I will be happy to respond and even add it to the article. Cheers.