Ask HN: Why are ringtones not interesting anymore?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=33427691

by lagrange77 • 4 years ago

18 43 4 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

Back in the Nokia days until the early smartphone days, custom phone ringtones were popular things to have.

I think the main reasons were distinguishability in crowded places and the demand for individualisation. I believe they were also one of the first digital assets, that were sold.

Nowadays, most people seem to have settled on either the vintage phone sound, or the default factory setting. Which leads to indistinguishability and homogenisation.

What are your thoughts on the reasons for that?

ev13• 4 years ago

In my groups (gen z), I do not know a single person that even makes calls, ever. Phones are on silent/dnd.

If you ever get a "real" phone call (not via discord, whatsapp, etc) it's either something you are explicitly expecting unavoidably (you would try as hard as possible to get them to email you or text you) or it's a scammer.

lagrange774• 4 years ago

Oh wow, i didn't know that about gen z.

ev13• 4 years ago

I don't know how well this generalises, but in my sample size most people including myself don't even know our own phone number if asked. You don't exchange phone numbers. You might hold out your phone for the other person to scan your Snapchat QR or tell them @hn2022 and a platform like instagram. If you say hn#2022 people know automatically which platform that is. A sizable amount don't even have phone numbers and opt for data plan only for cost savings if paying for their own plan.

tricolon2• 4 years ago

Early thirties here: my friends and I do not call people except for older relatives on occasion. We've kept our phones on vibrate for a decade and a half now.

We do, however, know our own phone numbers, and asking a cute stranger or a new friend for their number is still a thing.

CosmicBagel2• 4 years ago

Here's the thing, where I live (Canada) spam calls have become so bad that (unless you're in my contacts already) I almost never answer the phone. The scams aren't even in English most of the time :/

Actually it's filtered so that only 3 or so of my contacts get through the dnd.

*Scheduled calls / expected calls from specific companies are my one exception.

thaanpaa• 4 years ago

It's not just Gen Z. I'm a Gen X'er, approaching 50 fast, and I think I've had my phone on silent since 2011. More or less the same with my friends. The sound only gets switched on when expecting a call.

owow123• 4 years ago

This is my one and only gripe with "gen z".

Phone calls take 1% of the time to communicate complex ideas, I dont have to write documentation level explanations and I can hear your responses / tone and dynamically adjust to fit the conversation.

My feelings on this are especially prevalent at work, I understand more in an informal setting.

We have < 25's working in sales who HATE phone calls... it will be interesting to see how they make it in the future. The current "senior" sales reps go to the pub or play golf with clients & suppliers every now and then. I guess only the metrics will tell.

That being said if I have to text anyone > 40 I basically cry because they cant express any level of emotion over text and their over use punctuation I interpret as blunt.

God getting old is hard work (im only a > 25 < 30 something).

rongenre• 4 years ago

I'm an over 50 gen-x er. The protocol is to text first to see if I'm available to chat, and then do the call.

Unscheduled phone calls, if you're not my kids, go straight to voicemail.

GOATS-• 4 years ago

Interesting, I'm also a Gen Z and I prefer to call rather than text, especially if I'm organizing something with a group of friends. I often exchange phone numbers with people if I know I'm going to be seeing them again soon.

smoldesu• 4 years ago

The powers-that-be decided that file management is a desktop-class feature.

themodelplumber• 4 years ago

In my experience, ringtones are usually going to disturb some other soundtrack I've got on. Movies, music, ham radio, etc. So vibrate & light screen is my usual.

I do like playing with them for things like alarms and specific callers though, and sometimes make new ones using vintage keyboards (r/cheapkeys).

pndy• 4 years ago

The default factory in case of some devices is a good example of status symbol

lagrange774• 4 years ago

Didn't think of that, makes sense. Like white headphone cables vs. custom (potentially technically superior) ones in the iPod days.

Jtsummers2• 4 years ago

The only ringtones I hear are "interesting" ones. The Star Trek (TOS) theme from one colleague, going off whenever his wife (usually) calls. A coworker who has custom songs for various people. I only very rarely hear any other kind of ringtone. Everyone else seems to have done like me, switched their device to silent/vibrate.

lagrange774• 4 years ago

The Star Trek (TOS) theme from one colleague The TOS wall panel whistle signal is also nice for messages, while i prefer the TNG communicator jingle.

serf• 4 years ago

those two along with MGS Codec and Final Fantasy 'Menu Noise' are like the geek hall-of-fame ringtones.

kevinherron• 4 years ago

Myself and everybody around me keep their phones on silent/vibrate.

If your phone or computer makes noise in a public setting, I assume you have either no manners or self-awareness, or that you don't know how to use your device.

maksimur• 4 years ago

It shocks me to see so many comments mentioning they keep silent/vibrate and how commonplace it seems to be, but it makes sense as I don't hear so many phones ringing anymore, now that I think of it. I tried to have my phone on vibrate but I always end up missing important messages and calls. No idea how you do it.

xmonkee• 4 years ago

but I always end up missing important messages and calls

i do too, but that's fine. Generally speaking, people arrange calls beforehand now.

cma• 4 years ago

Smart watches do a better job of vibration based notification.

jghn2• 4 years ago

Phone calls aren't really a thing anymore but if someone sends me a message I feel it in my pocket. And if I miss something, so be it. Smart watches can also be configured to buzz your wrist on an incoming message.

barbariangrunge• 4 years ago

On iOS, I could not figure out after a day of searching how to use an mp3 as a ringtone without having a Mac and some sort of iTunes sync. That is why my ringtone is the borjng default. My android ringtone was wonderful imho

schwartzworld2• 4 years ago

Here's my take:

Ringtones were never really interesting. When I got my first cell phone it was fun choosing from the limited set of included ringtones, and my friend had one where we could program our own monophonic songs, which was cool. But it was just novelty, like changing your desktop wallpaper. And like desktop wallpaper, anything too complex or interesting can become an annoying distraction.

ravishi• 4 years ago

I used to spend time configuring my wallpaper and many other things in my computers. Today I use it only for work and change only the strictly necessary. I want less friction.

Today I hit a though decision: I missed the niceties of fish shell on the VM I work on, but everyone else uses bash so it's so much more convenient to share commands through chat, pairing sessions, etc. I have postponed the decision.

fragmede2• 4 years ago

Apple has not chosen to bless the plebs with this functionality, so it does not exist.

scotteric• 4 years ago

My friend had a phone during the early 2000s that allowed you to input notes to make your own ringtone. That was a unique feature. I can't remember the phone though. This was pre-android and maybe even monochrome.

suprjami• 4 years ago

Most Nokia phones around the time of The Matrix film could do this.

the_only_law• 4 years ago

I hardly call anyone anymore and I answer calls even more rarely.

simonblack• 4 years ago

I went through the 'pager era' in the 70s and 80s. It was always most annoying when in a group and a pager went off. Whose was it? We would all be reaching for our pagers to see it it was us.

The same thing happened when 'the small-brick' mobile phones came in around the late 80s to early 90s.

Finally, we eventually got phones with selectable ringtones around the mid 90s. I have always since then used a personal ringtone that is different from anybody else's. And no, I don't put it on 'silent' because a lot of the time I don't have it in my pocket.

nikau• 4 years ago

cell phones didn't typically have vibration in the mid 90s, the best my Ericson of that era had was an incrementing volume ringtone.

Havoc• 4 years ago

The only people with phones not on silent are the ones that can’t read the room in my experience.

Invariably also same crowd using laptop speakers in an open plan.

getpost• 4 years ago

I agree the most likely reason is that voice calls have become much more rare. But, a novelty-wearing-off effect may also be in play. When multiple fonts first became available, lots of people used lots of fonts-- the ransom note effect. Today there are more fonts than ever, but the vast majority of text is in the default proportional and monospace fonts.

CosmicBagel2• 4 years ago

In my experience, interesting ringtones are mostly just used for alarms & reminders. A classic being Chop Suey by System of a Down as your wake up alarm.

Ask HN: Why are ringtones not interesting anymore?

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