By Ernest Doku
There once was a time when the term ‘HD’ used to mean something. ‘High definition’ denoted a significantly better quality of image, video or sound, adhering to specific parameters and standards.
Then those wily marketing folk caught wind of it and HD has come to mean pretty much anything, from shorthand to describe games on the iPad and fancy mobile phones, to a pair of wraparound specs that can help you see real life in a little more clarity.
There is even the promise of daubing our living rooms in a high resolution hue, thanks to the invention of HD paint.
HD paint.
So excuse our scepticism when Orange announced that they were bringing high definition voice calls to phones in the United Kingdom.
Thankfully, they are trying to make HD mean something again as this service promises clearer and higher quality connections between mobiles, eliminating the occasional hiss and distortion that we’ve come to tolerate from chatting on the move.
Orange’s HD Voice runs on 3G connections utilising the WB-AMR (Wideband Adaptive Multi-Rate) speech codec, essentially meaning a wider bandwidth is used and packs in far more sound data, whilst placing the same strain on the network infrastructure.
Tom Alexander, Chief Executive of Everything Everywhere said: “Although what we use our mobile handsets for has evolved significantly in the past few years – the way we make mobile calls hasn’t changed a great deal since the 1990s.
“So we’re proud to be the first telecommunications brand in the UK to change this and offer customers a revolutionary new calling experience. With mobile HD Voice – hearing really is believing”.
Talk of bandwidth and codecs is certainly encouraging; this is not just a gimmick or attempt to differentiate Orange with a unique selling point, significant time and investment seems to have gone into improving the aural experience on mobiles with the results coming through loud and clear.
Okay, so that video was a little gimmicky, but tests and trials have been ongoing with many coming away suitably impressed with the clarity of hearing the person on the other end, equating them as being in the immediate vicinity.
Background ambient noise is subdued, whilst the disembodied voice on the other end is as clear as a bell…sounds like HD Voice is a hit!
Well, not just yet. It isn’t simply a matter of snagging an Orange SIM card and getting your Bob Hoskins on.
HD Voice is limited to four specific handsets initially – the Nokia X6, Nokia E5, Nokia 5230 and the Samsung Omnia Pro – with further devices on the network soon to receive the signal.
A cute HD Voice logo is also present on new handsets to let you know if it is compatible with Orange’s service, available to no extra charge to those lucky phone owners…provided you’re in an area with decent 3G reception.
And talking to someone else with decent 3G reception.
On the same network.
Whilst great in theory and a huge step for mobile, the problem is that the advent of HD Voice on the various networks might be more divisive than anything, with each attempting to promise the richest quality of chatting experience rather than colluding to make the service better for everyone.
Once the range of compatible handsets broaden and 3G reception becomes less flaky in the UK, we are sure that we will banish the memory of crackling lines and dropped calls to the history books, whilst Orange blazing a trail without cost to the consumer is a commendable start.
More importantly, it promises a future for connectivity so bright that we’d have to wear HD WrapArounds…definitely a good thing.
