Earlier, Apple had rolled out spatial audio for Android after announcing its arrival at the WWDC 2020 event. Now, streaming leader Netflix has taken a page out of this book by making Spatial Audio support available for its iOS and iPadOS apps for no extra cost adding compatibility with AirPods Pro and AirPods Max. If you have a Netflix account and you use either of the two devices, the experience of watching shows on Netflix is about to get better.
Netflix confirmed the same after a Reddit user from the UK spotted the feature. However, this feature will only work if you have the latest Netflix app and iOS 14 or higher. The company had said that it was testing Spatial Audio support earlier this year, and now it has made good on its promise.
Spatial audio is known to enable an immersive experience using directional audio filters, allowing the user to listen to surround sound. It enables the headphones to track the movements of the user’s head or device to direct sound and adjust sound frequencies each ear receives, by using the gyroscope and accelerometer in the AirPods. In short, it offers a 3D sound effect.
If you want to turn Spatial Audio off (or on), there is a toggle in the Control Centre.
This feature makes the experience of watching movies and shows a more immersive one (akin to watching them in a movie theatre), something that HBO Max and Disney+ have taken advantage of.
Spatial Audio remains something that Apple has been focussing on for quite some time if its announcements at its WWDC 2020 and 2021 events have been any indication. The upcoming iOS 15 is set to have “Spatialise Stereo,” an upgraded version of the spatial audio, as well, which is said to simulate the Spatial Audio experience for non-Dolby Atmos content. Additionally, Apple had earlier brought spatial audio to Apple Music on Android devices and tvOS.
Spatial audio is a hit among gamers as well. Add to that Netflix’s increasing interest in mobile gaming, and you have another new content category for the streaming service giant.
One thing is for sure – if you have AirPods Pro or AirPods Max, your experience is about to get much better and immersive.
