For Apple users, spatial audio should not be unfamiliar, this is an evolution of 3D surround sound, it creates an interactive dynamic soundscape, can “make music, TV and movies come to life”, Apple has begun from iOS 15 through compatible headphones to bring support for head tracking of the spatial audio function.
IN SIMPLE TERMS, SPATIAL AUDIO WITH HEAD TRACKING PROVIDES YOU WITH A SPECIAL KIND OF 3D SURROUND SOUND, BUT ONLY COMPATIBLE DEVICES CAN PLAY IT, AND IT CAN REACT TO THE LISTENER’S ACTIONS. SIMILARLY, THE SOUND CHANGES AS YOUR HEAD MOVEMENTS CHANGE, ENABLING A MORE COMFORTABLE MUSIC EXPERIENCE THAN TRADITIONAL AUDIO.
Although Apple already supports this feature, in fact, Google has only developed from Android 12L and has now achieved partial support, and the next Android 13 will eventually fully support the head tracking spatial audio function, of course, provided that you can meet the functional requirements.
From the underlying technology, it leverages sensors in some headphones, such as accelerometers and gyroscopes, to better track head movements and make audio adjustments accordingly. According to Esper’s Mishaal Rahman, the current preview version of Android 13 fully supports the use of spatial audio with head tracking on compatible devices.
Audio HAL v7.1 adds APIs for controlling the variable latency mode of the output stream. If the device plans to connect to spatial audio that supports head tracking via Bluetooth A2DP, delay mode control is required. There are two modes of latency: Free (that is, there is no specific limit on latency) and Low (relatively low latency, typically less than 100ms) that is compatible with head tracking operations.
Android 13 is still in beta, and if nothing else, it will arrive in the second half of this year, so stay tuned.