Mobile Phone Ringtones
Many phones come with a large number of ringtones to let you know that someone is calling you. These can range from:
- Monophonic: simple tunes played by a single tone at a time. Most mobile phones are capable of playing this type of ringtone.
- Polyphonic: these tunes play up to 40 individual notes simultaneously with different instruments. This combination of tones produces a harmonic melody, which tends to sound 'truer' to the original recording of a song. Newer phones support polyphonic ringtones.
- Real Sound: the newest mobiles can play digital sound samples either transferred as a digital file (such as a MP3) onto the handset or, on some models, by using a built-in sound recorder.
A survey recently conducted by Tesco Mobile suggests that 66% of people have been so annoyed with someone else's choice of mobile ringtone that they had either switched off the phone or asked the owner to do so.
Additional ringtones are available from hundreds of online sites, and are also extensively advertised on television. In fact, one particular ringtone company booked nearly 2,500 advert spots per DAY during May of this year, so the chances of anyone missing its message were fairly slim!
You can order monophonic ring tones through the web or by SMS for around £1.50. However, your phone will need to be WAP enabled to receive polyphonic or real sound ringtones; you should be able to find them for around £2.50 for polyphonic, and £4 for real sound. There are also a number of ringtone clubs you can join which will give you a certain number of 'free' ringtones in return for a monthly fee.
