Wi-Gear Inc. has introduced a new pair of stereo headphones called the iMuff which include CSR plc’s Clear Voice Capture (CVC) technology and BlueCore3-Multimedia silicon for enhanced Bluetooth connectivity. CVC helps to cancel echo noise and suppress background noise from voice communications. As you probably guessed it, the iMuffs are designed to work with none other than the Apple iPod (hence .. the name iMuffs).  Wi-Gear offers a Bluetooth dock adapter for the new Apple iPod nano and iPod video.

The use of the BlueCore3-Multimedia chipset allows the iMuffs to connect to both an iPod (with a Bluetooth adapter) and a Bluetooth enabled mobile phone. When a phone call comes in, the headset will automatically stop the music playback. Music playback automatically starts up when the call is either rejected or ended.

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Wi-Gear Selects BlueCore and CVC for iMuffs; First Stereo Headset to Include CVC for Enhanced Voice Call Quality

CSR plc (LSE:CSR), leading provider of wireless technology has added its Clear Voice Capture (CVC) system to Wi-Gear Inc.’s iMuffs stereo headphones. The headphones, for use with both mobile phones and music players, employ CSR’s BlueCore3-Multimedia (BlueCore3-MM) silicon for enhanced Bluetooth connectivity and support for native music compression CODECS. The headphones, which are available now, use CVC to ensure the highest quality, clear voice communications despite the proximity of the integrated microphone to the speaker within the earpiece.

The iMuffs are the first Bluetooth stereo headphones to support CSR’s CVC technology which cancels echo and suppresses noise in voice communications by separating out the voice signals of interest using proprietary signal extraction techniques. This approach employs an active and self-adaptive system that utilises the manner in which human speech is heard and processed.

The headphones are also designed with iPod users in mind, offering complementary styling and excellent audio performance. To enhance compatibility with the iPod, Wi-Gear offers a Bluetooth dock adapter for the new Nano and Video formats or a dongle, allowing them to stream music to Bluetooth-enabled speaker systems and stereo headphones within a 10m range.

The iMuffs use BlueCore3-Multimedia (BlueCore3-MM) with an enhanced digital signal processor (DSP) to simultaneously connect to both a mobile handset and iPod via the supplied Bluetooth adaptor. BlueCore3-MM supports the advanced audio distribution profile (A2DP) and audio-visual remote control profile (AVRCP) which allow the wearer to control playback of their music via the ergonomic headset controls. The wearer will never need to worry about missing a call while listening to music. The headset will automatically stop the music playback to alert the user to an incoming call. The user then decides to accept or reject the call with a touch of a button on the headset and once the call is finished, music playback will automatically resume.

Luke D’Arcy, product marketing manager, CSR commented, “Consumer demand for high-quality Bluetooth stereo headsets has been building for a while but it is only recently that products have started to come to the market. The ability to control music playback and voice calls from multiple sources simultaneously, on the same device, was an important breakthrough. Wi-Gear has implemented this advanced functionality in addition to ensuring that the quality of the calls is second to none, in an attractive design which should be popular with consumers.”

About CSR

CSR plc is the leading global provider of Bluetooth technology and has developed expertise in other single-chip wireless communication standards such as Wi-Fi (IEEE802.11). CSR offers developed hardware/software solutions for Bluetooth based around BlueCore, a fully integrated 2.4 GHz radio, baseband and microcontroller.

CSR has now launched its fifth generation BlueCore suite and is in volume manufacture of its fourth generation BlueCore devices. BlueCore4 supports the Enhanced Data Rate (EDR) standard which was ratified at the end of 2004. BlueCore4 remains the only EDR silicon to be shipping in volume today. In November 2004 CSR launched UniFi, the first single chip 802.11a/b/g embedded solution specifically targeting the mobile phone and consumer electronics markets.

BlueCore features in over 50 per cent of all Bluetooth devices shipped and over 60 per cent of all qualified Bluetooth enabled products and modules listed on the Bluetooth website with industry leaders including Nokia, Dell, Panasonic, Sharp, Motorola, IBM, Apple, NEC, Toshiba, RIM and Sony using BlueCore devices in their range of Bluetooth products.

In March 2005, CSR acquired Clarity Technologies Inc., for its Clear Voice Capture (CVC) technology that enhances the audio performance of any voice-based product or system. Applications for CVC include wireless headsets, handsets and automotive hands free systems.

In August 2005, CSR completed the acquisition of UbiNetics’ software business, providing a strong R&D team to accelerate its existing software development in Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and UWB. The UbiNetics team gives CSR the capacity to extend its offering to mobile handset customers.

CSR has its headquarters and offices in Cambridge, UK, and offices in Japan, Korea, Taiwan, China, India, France, Denmark, Sweden and both Texas and Detroit in the USA.

More information can be found at http://www.csr.com and the partner web site http://www.btdesigner.com

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