For VoIP quality, it's not in the cards, it's in the chips and Texas instruments is making an effort to move VoIP to HD. The company has revealed technology enhancements that redefine its extensive VoIP solutions portfolio, in an effort to drive voice applications even closer to a high-definition experience. TI is licensing the Low Delay AAC super wideband codec from the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS. Headquartered in Erlangen, Germany, Fraunhofer IIS is the home of MP3 and co-inventor of AAC audio coding. Powered by TI's digital signal processors (DSPs), the MPEG-4 AAC-LD super-wideband codec offers substantial benefits compared to earlier wideband audio technology, and has the performance capabilities to make HD voice a reality in global IP networks.

Able to transmit voice at a sample rate of up to 48 KHz, super-wideband codec technology offers significant sound quality improvements over traditional narrowband and wideband voice codecs. The technology provides near-CD quality audio at data-rates of 48-64 kbps for better clarity with applications like IP-based voice and video, as well as transmission of music over the telephone. The greater sampling rate capabilities of an HD voice channel together with the fidelity of an audio codec accounts for sound quality that is significantly richer and extended at both ends of the spectrum, and produces a perceptible difference in the resonance and intelligibility of voice.

Just as HD television is revolutionizing the way we watch TV and HD radio enhances the daily commutes for millions of people each day, HD voice will deliver a clear communications experience. It will also be a critical enabling technology for a host of applications in the future, such as improved speech recognition, real-time language translation, and appliance voice control. At the same time, advances in home networking and broadband technologies will be essential in driving the move to a voice-powered home and beyond, where a person's voice will be able to do everything from conveying a greater depth of meaning and understanding to simply turning on the lights in a room.

With this new super-wideband technology, TI's VoIP solutions can deliver CD-quality sound on both ends of a VoIP-enabled phone call, while supporting a full range of voice and music capabilities, including fidelity comparable to MP3 audio. Leveraging DaVinci technology processing performance and TI's VoIP platforms, the AAC LD super-wideband codec can support real-time IP applications including multimedia integration and HD audio.