Apple recently rolled out a new feature called spatial audio to its AirPods Pro headphones that is intended to improve the listening experience. It joins a number of other features introduced at launch that differentiate the AirPods Pro to standard AirPods. The concept behind spatial audio is certainly clever, and so too is the technology at play.
In terms of tech specs, there's not much between the AirPods Pro and AirPods, with both based on the H1 chip, weighing in at around the same, and providing similar battery life. Both also allow users to summon Siri for various questions or tasks if they want to. The biggest differences are the features they offer, with the AirPods Pro boasting a number of capabilities the AirPods do not. Active Noise Cancellation, from example, adapts to surrounding background noise, and a transparency mode allows users to hear what's going on around them. They are also more sweat and water-resistant, and their fit is customizable, unlike the standard AirPods.
The addition of spatial audio to the feature-set of the AirPods Pro is intended to bring a "cinema-like surround-sound experience" to headphone audio listening. Its effect is intended to give users the impression of hearing sound coming from the "right place" when they are watching a show or movie. This should remain the case even as the viewer moves their head, with the sound-field being mapped to the intended point,. The result is the sound of an explosion, for example, that can be heard in the left ear but will move into the right as the user turns their head.
How Spatial Audio Works
To achieve this, Apple uses the accelerometers in the AirPods Pro to track the movement of the user's head. By doing so, it can calculate how the audio should be effectively remapped. This is then done using a combination of directional audio filters and by adjusting the frequencies sent to each ear, creating what Apple calls an "immersive sound experience" and giving the impression that direction of the audio has changed.
Spatial audio will work with content encoded in 5.1 and 7.1 surround sound as well as Dolby Atmos. It will only work with audiovisual content from specific supported apps, though, and only certain Apple devices will support the features too. Listeners must have an iPhone 7 or later, or one of various compatible iPad models, as well as either iOS 14 or iPadOS 14 at the earliest. However, for those who can use it, spatial audio is an exciting addition to AirPods Pro.
Source: Apple