Sony and JBL earbuds will get ‘audio switching’ function in the coming months

Wireless earbuds from Sony, JBL and Google will receive a limited form of multidevice support on Android and Chrome OS. The earbuds can then switch audio source themselves, if, for example, a phone call comes in on a smartphone.

The feature is coming to a limited number of earbuds in the coming months, Google says. For example, when watching a video on a tablet with the earbuds in, it should be possible to have the software switch automatically when a phone call comes in on a connected smartphone.

It is unknown which earbuds will get the functions exactly, only that it concerns models from Sony, JBL and Google itself. The tablet and phone show a message on the screen when the audio source has been switched. In addition, the earbuds automatically switch back at the end of a phone call. It is unknown whether the feature also works with audio calls via VoIP and video calling applications such as WhatsApp and Zoom. The feature will be available in the coming months.