HD Voice

[Gavin Scott]

Now this is interesting.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters ... r_app.html

Apparently the next "killer app" for mobiles will be voice - in HD, no less, so it sounds like you're in the same room as your caller. Obviously decent microphones in handsets (or peripherals) will be key to this, as will all that juicy 3G bandwidth.

This could be good for radio presenting/reporting remotely - but as a plain old domestic user I'm really excited at the prospect of this. I love mobile calls with my earphones in - great for long chats as I walk across the city, but a radio-like crystal clear sound is like that with a cherry on top.

[Sput]

I do wonder how they're going to make this work when there doesn't seem to be a network in that world that can cope with smartphones in any number

[Pete]

is this related to the "hd audio" guff written on the boxes for Phillips phones in Tesco?

[Gavin Scott]

is this related to the "hd audio" guff written on the boxes for Phillips phones in Tesco?

Tell me more about this guff.

[Pete]

Well all I know is some of their phones claim to have HD sound and thus sound wonderful, but I'm unsure how this is done without a network upgrade from BT.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Philips-CD2553S ... B001CLYASO <-- EXAMPLE

[Gavin Scott]

Well all I know is some of their phones claim to have HD sound and thus sound wonderful, but I'm unsure how this is done without a network upgrade from BT.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Philips-CD2553S ... B001CLYASO <-- EXAMPLE

Oh I see.

I'm confused by this as well - as presumably the application for mobiles is compressing voice before sending as data across the cell network - and as you say, plugging a DECT phone into a BT line is sending the sound as an analogue wave - if indeed that's how BT still works?

I don't know. But I'll bet Nick does, or maybe Mr Cornwall?

[Nick Harvey]

If you're on a conventional BT line, then yes, analogue transmission back to the exchange, then digits over the trunk network as far as the exchange at the other end.

If you're on an iSDN line, then you get converted to digits in the phone and it's digital between you and the local exchange.

If you're on VOIP, however, it's also digits all the way, but they go down the 'internet' half of the pair of wires to the exchange, rather than the 'telephone' half. That's unless you're on a VOIP private exchange, probably at work, in which case the digits might go down an iSDN line to the exhange.

That's about it in layman's terms; if you want to dig deeper, then please book one of my very competively priced training sessions!

[Gavin Scott]

That's about it in layman's terms; if you want to dig deeper, then please book one of my very competitively priced training sessions!

I have this much *scatters coins*.

Keep going...

[marksi]

Maybe HD Audio will work better with those "digital" headphones I've seen in Currys.

[Sput]

They're binary, at least: You fall for them or you don't

[Chris]

I wish they'd make their coverage near to 100% as possible, before adding bells and whistles on like HD voice. Better quality is no use if you can't get a signal at all!