Ericsson, Orange show off HD voice

Ericsson and Orange promise to offer the best voice quality in the world during the Mobile World Congress next week.
 
The pair have teamed up to offer high-definition voice on Orange’s network in Barcelona, and say the quality is so good, it’s like speaking face-to-face.
 
Ericsson states the improved quality is possible thanks to a new coder that offers wider speech bandwidth on the same amount of network capacity as current coders.
 
However, both users need HD-enabled handsets to enjoy the better quality.
 
Ulf Ewaldsson, VP and head of product area radio at Ericsson, says consumers in Spain reacted positively to HD voice. “[They] felt they were better-able to share feelings, do business, and communicate information.”