Good news for those who have audio accessories that support the LHDC 5.0 codec as Google is now supporting it natively with Android 17. The support was quietly added in an Android 17 update last week and was spotted by Reddit user QuantumCatalyzt.
LHDC is an alternative high-resolution audio codec developed by Savitech to the Sony-developed LDAC codec. The difference is that LDAC prioritizes the highest audio quality with a bit rate of 990 kbps but has latency that makes it unsuitable for video games. LHDC has a maximum bit rate of 900 kbps but prioritizes low latency making it compatible for video games.
Prior to Android 17, audio accessories that supported LHDC could only use the SBC or AAC codecs (with lower bit rates) on devices that did not support it. Among the device and accessory manufacturers that supported LHDC were Oppo, OnPlus, Edifier, Realme, Vivo, Nothing, and Xiaomi.
