Rogers/Fido Now Supports HD Voice Calling on the iPhone 5 [Update]

The iPhone 5 supports HD Voice, a feature that results in increased call clarity. We previously told you it was only available on the Bell and Telus LTE network, with Rogers noting it would be coming soon. The latter has now confirmed HD Voice is up and running on their network with us:

Rogers Network is capable of supporting HD Voice for devices that are HD voice compliant. Customers with handsets that support HD voice will experience clearer call quality and enhanced suppression of background noise. This feature is only available between two 3G/4G handsets on our network that are both HD voice compliant.

The statement doesn’t specifically mention the iPhone 5, but we can read between the lines. Our readers have also recently noticed increased call clarity lately on the Rogers/Fido network:

An older Globe and Mail article notes WIND Mobile was the first to introduce HD Voice on their network, followed by Bell and Telus (on their shared network). They also describe a bit more about the wideband audio codec:

Call quality is determined by something called a codec, which is the software algorithm responsible for compressing all audio before it travels across the wireless network. Traditionally, carriers have used narrowband audio codecs, which only transmit a small slice – 200-3400Hz – of the audible voice frequency range.

However, Bell, Virgin and WIND are now using what’s called an adaptive multi-rate wideband audio codec – AMR-WB for short, and are branding that HD voice – which expands the frequency range to 50-7000KHz.

[…]

According to a statement from Bell’s spokesman, Jason Laszlo, the company is operating “at the rate of 12.65 kbit/sec which is the most common industry implementation” –which, in theory, means that HD voice customers across Bell, Virgin and WIND should be capable of communication with one another using the wideband codec.

Have you noticed increased call quality thanks to HD Voice on the Rogers/Fido network? It will require both the receiver and caller to be using HD Voice capable phones, such as the iPhone 5.

Update: Here’s the full list of HD Voice capable handsets Rogers listed for us:

Samsung Galaxy Nexus
Apple iPhone 5
Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc
Nokia X7-00
HTC EVO 3D (PG86310)
HTC Raider (PH39150)
Sony Ericsson Xperia Play
Sony Ericsson Xperia U
Nokia N8-00
Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini Pro
HTC One S (PJ40110)
Motorola Quench
Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S
Sony Ericsson Xperia S
Sony Ericsson Pro
Sony LT28i Xperia Ion

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