Spirent Launches Industry First Bench-Top System for Fast, Reliable Evaluation of Mobile Device Acoustic Speech Quality

Sunnyvale, Calif. – June 3, 2014 – Spirent Communications, the leader in user experience analytics for mobile devices and services, has launched AVS (Acoustic Verification System), the industry’s first bench-top system for fast and reliable evaluation of mobile device acoustic speech quality. With AVS, operators are now able to incorporate sophisticated acoustic speech analyses into their forward and reverse device logistics processes, driving substantial cost savings and improved user experience. AVS has already been deployed by a tier 1 North American operator for acoustic speech evaluation of large volumes of returned mobile devices.

Each year, mobile operator forward logistics groups receive millions of devices from manufacturers and then ship these devices to retail stores and end users. A key goal for these groups is to ensure that the devices they ship will deliver an excellent user experience. AVS helps forward logistics groups assure user experience by evaluating a key aspect of user experience: acoustic speech quality. With a breakthrough bench-top form factor, AVS makes acoustic speech evaluation of large volumes of devices both practical and cost-effective. Using AVS, forward logistics groups are able to statistically sample device lots for acoustic speech quality and have confidence that shipped devices will deliver an excellent user experience.

Mobile operator reverse logistics groups have a similar challenge to their forward logistics groups, processing millions of mobile devices returned by customers each year. One of the most common reasons for device returns is “poor audio quality.” AVS enables acoustic speech quality evaluation of all returned devices with “poor audio quality,” providing a superior ability to identify defective devices. Better identification of in-warranty devices with defects can lead to substantial reductions in device costs for operators. In addition, better identification of defective devices ensures only fully functional devices are sent for refurbishment, leading to improved user experience.

“We see an exciting opportunity to help operators improve their forward and reverse logistics processes with AVS,” said Des Owens, General Manager of Spirent’s Service Experience business unit. “In tests of actual returned devices, AVS showed that more than 60% of these devices had acoustic speech quality defects that were undetectable by less sophisticated subjective and functional tests. By improving operators’ ability to identify defective in-warranty devices, AVS can save operators millions.” 

AVS supports acoustic speech quality evaluation for any wireless technology including GSM, CDMA, UMTS and VoLTE.