What Are
Ringtones
What are Ringtones? Ringtones are melodic sounds a
cellular or cell phone makes when an incoming call or
message arrives. Since cellular phones are significantly
more sophisticated than land line phones, music ringtones
can be personalized to suit the owner's personal taste.
A variety of ringtones have appealed to consumers, increasing
handsets saleability.
Even the American Idol TV Show has its own custom American
Idol ringtones! Plus, some
American Idol Awards contenders and idol award winners
such as the very popular
Sanjaya Malakar may be getting their own customized
music ringtones! (Note: The preceding 2 sentences and
web-links were added and edited by 3gmusic.com editor).
Why use Music Ringtones? There are a number of reasons
music lovers use distinct ringtones.
- Distinguish Callers - Advanced feature sets allow
for different sounds to signify different callers.
- Identification - When you are in a meeting and
a phone rings you will know if its yours without having
to look
- Fun - Lets face, having a cell phone with personality
and character is appealing to general consumers
Types of Ringtones There are typically two different
types of ringtones: monophonic ringtones and polyphonic
musical ringtones.
Monophonic Ringtones Monophonic tones are simple
tunes, most commonly compatible with today's cell
phones. The majority of cell phones can only make
a single tone at a time. The monophonic ringtone tune
is comprised of a series of sequential tones at different
frequencies.
Polyphonic Ringtones Polyphonic tones are played on
cell phones that have the capability of playing up to
16 separate music tones at once. The combination of
tones creates a harmonic melody. Polyphonic ringtones
are more musical than a monophonic ringtone. Newer 3g
phones support polyphonic ringtones.
It is likely that future cell phones will be capable
of producing musical ringtones of CD/DVD quality.
Finding Ringtones & Ringtone Compatibility There
are a number of websites that offer ringtones, images
or even games to download onto your cell phone. The
websites vary in that some allow you to purchase specific
ringtones while others offer subscriptions that allow
you to download an unlimited number of music ringtones.
When you locate a ringtone be sure to first ensure
that it will work with your cellular model phone,
especially 3G, and the web site is respectful of the
artists copyright. Like any original works, artists
receive royalties for ringtones, be sure that the
website has the permission to distribute the ringtone.
Sites that we've found helpful in finding ringtones
and determining compatibility are:
Ringtones Central - http://www.ringtones-central.com
Free Ringtones Online - http://www.free-ringtones-online.com
Ringtone Composition Frequently consumers will wish
to compose personalized ringtones. Occasionally, cell
phones can be programmed with 3G Music Ringtones by
entering a series of buttons. Software is also available
that allow consumers to create their own melodic ringtones.
The software runs on a computer, and once the tune
is perfected it can be transferred to the phone via
a data cable. Suggested music ringtone composition
software can be found at:
Ringtone Software - http://www.ring-tone-software.com
About the Author - Sharon Housley is
the marketing director at NotePage, Inc. NotePage, Inc.
develops SMS, alphanumeric paging and wireless messaging
software solutions. http://www.notepage.net
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