Qualcomm Announces QCC5141 Occluded Earbud Reference Design Platform to Simplify True Wireless Development

Truly wireless earbuds are growing rapidly in popularity as consumers discover everything that the Apple AirPods and Apple AirPods Pro are capable of and experiment other products, demanding similarly rich functionalities from their devices. To allow manufacturers to stay ahead of the curve by bringing innovative new features to market quickly with Bluetooth 5.2, Qualcomm made available its QCC5141 Occluded Earbud Reference Design with Qualcomm TrueWireless Mirroring and Qualcomm Hybrid ANC.

The race to lead the true wireless earbud market category is heating up, with the major brands introducing updated specifications and focusing on key selling points. The whole market recognizes that Apple has a clear lead due to its tight hardware integration and dedicated wireless chip, already in its second-generation. Now Sony enters the market with the new and improved WF-1000XM3 model - $229.99 - featuring also its own HD Noise-Canceling Processor QN1e processor, new Bluetooth chip and optimized antenna design.

Audio and communications technology specialist Jabra announced that it has expanded its Elite family of headphones and earbuds to provide the best combined voice and music experience, with the Jabra Elite 65e. These neckband wireless earbuds are engineered for best-in-class wireless calls and music. They feature Jabra's leading Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) solution, providing two levels of noise cancellation and challenging existing products in the market.

Among the many new true wireless earbuds unveiled at CES 2018, Jabra was a clear stand-out with its new Elite 65t and Elite Active 65t models. Benefiting from extensive experience in wireless audio and hearing aids, Jabra engineered the new Elite 65t earbuds for the best on-the-go true wireless calls and music experience - including an ‘Active’ version for those doing sports. Among the new features is also the integration for Amazon Alexa on-the-go and integrated one-touch access to Siri and Google Now.

Bose made two important announcements on its popular range of headphones. Entering a new increasingly popular category, Bose introduced its SoundSport Free truly wireless earbuds, designed especially for active users that want to workout with music. At the same time, the Massachusetts company updated its iconic QC35 noise-cancelling headphones to become the first to offer voice access to Google Assistant, and introducing new settings to control environmental noise.