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Kyocera Smart Sonic receiver transmits call audio through cranial vibrations (video)
Kyocera's Smart Sonic receiver and tissue conduction technology have been around for some time, but this year at MWC, we had another chance to test it out. In case you didn't know, the receiver's a ceramic piezoelectric actuator that takes the place of a phone's speaker to let listeners hear phone calls in even the loudest environments. We got to test it out with a Kyocera Torque, and well... trust us, you'll want to see (and hear) the results in the video after the break.
KDDI reveals its Summer 2012 collection: Android smartphones are still hot
It's that time of the season again, as Japan's mobile carriers unveil more alternate-universe models that we'll probably never see elsewhere. Leading the pack is the final version of Fujitsu's long-time-coming quad-core Android phone, arriving as the Arrows Z ISW13F. With NVIDIA's Tegra 3, WiMAX connectivity, 16GB of built-in storage and a 4.6-inch 1280 x 720 display, Fujitsu's somehow jammed it all into less than 11mm of smartphone. The 13-megapixel camera includes an Exmor R sensor, while a microSD slot can add up to 32GB of space. The AQUOS Serie is another belle of KDDI's spring ball, with a 4.6-inch 1280 x 720 display, 1-seg TV tuner and a 12-megapixel camera on the back. It's also the first phone to pack both NFC and Felica mobile payment hardware into the same device, mobile wallet fans. The collection is also joined by the HTC J and the final retail version of Kyocera and KDDI's "Smart Sonic Receiver" in the Urbano Progresso -- a phone that transmits sound through vibration. Any ex-pats in the mood for a new keitai can take a closer look at the rest of the new family at the source below. Update: Kyocera has confirmed to us that the Smart Sonic Receiver used in the Urbano Progresso is indeed the same tissue conduction technology Kyocera demonstrated last week at CTIA Wireless.
Kyocera teases tissue conduction audio technology for mobile phones at CTIA
Can you hear me now? It's a common phrase in the mobile industry, but if Kyocera has its way, the saying could quickly become a thing of the past, thanks to tissue conduction technology that it plans to integrate into future handsets. Rather than operating with a traditional earpiece, we were told the display itself vibrates to create sound waves. The end result is an aural experience that can be perceived with your facial tissues and bones, and it's said to dramatically improves perceived audio quality within noisy environments. Bone conduction technology was initially created for those with hearing difficulty, and while Kyocera isn't the first to reveal a novel implementation within mobile phones (a distinction that belongs to KDDI), the technology is Kyocera's own. During our brief hands-on demo, we were rather impressed by the noticeable difference created by tissue conduction in comparison to a traditional handset -- this applies to both quiet and noisy environments. In case you're curious, no, the vibrations aren't jarring, and yes, we'd genuinely like to see the technology take to the mainstream.
