DESIGN PLUS AUDIO TRENDS
Covid-19 has been a key reason to
utilise headphones within the home
environment.”
Bernice Cramer, Director of
Product Management and Global
Marketing at Bose, added that
headphones were no longer simply
about passive listening alone but
were now being used for multitasking.
As we’ve got use to juggling
remote working with other personal
commitments and family time,
Cramer suggested that Covid-19
had accelerated the need to move
between different spaces and that,
“headphone devices are now being
used as an interface with the world.”
Tim Johnston, Vice President
of Engineering at Starkey Hearing
warned that while headsets and
headphones were providing a broad
range of innovative solutions for
improving communication and
providing a form of escapism, the
fact was that with so many people
now being exposed to more sound
than ever before, with total exposure
over one day since lockdown having
increased phenomenally, there was a
growing risk to hearing health.
He made the point that, “A
growing number of young people
are now experiencing hearing loss
through sound exposure. We also
have to consider the fact that with
more people living longer lives so
they will be living with hearing loss for
longer.”
Multiple-product ownership
George made the point that the
headphones market and the rate
of innovation for new products is
helping to fuel an addictive need,
among consumers, for premium audio
quality.
While consumer preferences for
audio devices will certainly differ, the
panel agreed that we would be seeing
an overlap between what consumers
are seeking with headphones
products and what is requested from
the hearing aid market.
According to Chris Havell, Senior
Director of Product Marketing, Voice
& Music at Qualcomm Technologies,
“While we will see multiple-product
ownership, there are very significant
differences between certain use
cases and therefore where a product
has its focus. Our requirements will
certainly differ for work purposes, for
fitness and for entertainment – so
I don’t think we will see an overarching
dominant technology.”
Cramer added that, “the single
most reliable predicter about whether
consumers will buy a pair of premium
headphones, is whether they
already own another pair of premium
headphones.”
According to Cramer, people
remain interested in custom-built
devices for many different activities
and we will not be looking at a ‘onesize
fits all’ solution.
“Sound quality is a universal
requirement,” commented George.
“First and foremost, it’s purely about
the listening experience and the
ability to listen to music in better
quality.”
However, as all headphones
products are becoming more
specialised, there was agreement
that audio quality, by itself, would no
longer be sufficient.
Microphone quality will also be
crucial and the implementation of
AI allowing users to distinguish
voices from background noise will
be particularly important given the
amount of time now spent attending
virtual meetings remotely.
“Situational hearing enhancement
will be invaluable,” added Cramer,
“and hearing enhancement is likely
to become wrapped up in the audio
quality of devices.”
Looking to the future of audio
Havell said that there were still
numerous improvements to be
made.
He pointed to immersive audio
quality, microphone audio quality and
protecting users’ health as all being
of importance.
In addition to this, consumers
were now gaming and watching
movies more using headsets, which
will mean that audio quality will also
have to address other issues such as
delivereing lower latency.
Havell added that it would be
essential for the industry to start
implementing these features, moving
forward, into standard headphone
products for consumers.
“With multiple product ownership
likely, it will be about delivering
a particular product for a specific
purpose. Working from home will
be about good communications,
blocking out background noise
to deliver a more professional
experience; while with sport
applications I doubt users will be
worried about the quality of a call,
but rather the audio experience.”
Future trends
Over the next decade audio demand
is expected to increase substantially
and there is likely to be a requirement
for more personalised audio, along
with more voice control.
Users will expect the audio
experience to be seamless and
transferable, so they will be able to
move from the office, to their car and to
the home with no drop off in quality.
The need for more personalised
audio will be achievable because of
more intelligence being available, so
it will be possible to create better
individual audio experiences, although
that may require users to give up
some degree of privacy.
Immersive technologies will
also require significant advances
in audio technology as the need for
generative sound systems for virtual
objects, meeting the need to not only
‘feel’ and ‘believe’ in virtual objects
but create the sounds that are
associated with objects in order to
believe in them, will be required.
Audio continues to matter and in
this space it’s no longer simply about
delivering an experience that is ‘just
good enough’.
“Sound quality
is a universal
requirement,
it’s purely about
the listening
experience and
the ability to listen
to music in better
quality.”
Stuart George
26 23 February 2021 www.newelectronics.co.uk
/www.newelectronics.co.uk