Notification sounds can be a lot of fun to play with and a great way to embrace Android customization. From having your device proudly announce “You’ve got mail!” through to video game noises, catch phrases from your favorite movie and snippets of your favorite song, if it can be stored as an audio file on your device, it can be your notification sound. But, how do you change it?
In this tutorial for our beginning Android users, we’ll find out.
Changing your notification sound can be done in a number of ways. Android has built-in tools to handle the setting, which we’ll be showing you today, or you can install one of many apps dedicated to the cause.
The important thing here, which I am sure we’ve all learned at one point or another, be sure to choose an appropriate sound for your needs. It is funny when we see someone on TV make a fool of themselves in public or at work because of an inappropriate choice in ringer or notification sounds, but I doubt you want to be that person in real life.
Change notification sound
Changing notification sounds is quite simple and the process is nearly identical on all version of Android out there. Today’s imagery is from a vanilla Android 5.0.1 Lollipop device.
Start by heading into your main system Settings.
Find and tap on Sound and notification, your device may just say Sound.
Find and tap on Default notification ringtone your device may say Notification Sound. If this option is grayed out on you, it may be blocked when your device is in vibrate/silent mode, or Priority mode, just turn your volume back up to continue.
Choose a sound. This is the fun part, start tapping on each sound to hear it in action.
When you’ve chosen a sound, tap on OK to finish.
As you’ve seen, the above steps only let you choose a notification sound from the device’s built-in options. If you have your own audio file that you wish to use, you will need to employ a third party app to continue.
Using your own media files as a notification sound
This is where the sky is the limit. Using your own custom chosen media files as a notification sound is a marvelous customization for your Android device. We’ve already looked at this quite a while ago, I say a refresher is in order.
There is a long list of apps that will help you here, a few of them you might not expect.
If you are looking to take a clip of a music file, you’ll want to look at some of the many ringtone or .mp3 snippet apps like Ringtone Maker. If you don’t know what you want yet, you’ll want to use a discovery service, like Zedge. But if your file is all ready to go, look toward your file explorer for a potential solution.
In these parts, ES File Explorer is a preferred file explorer by many. Among all the other things this app can tackle, operating as a media selector is one of them. If you have ES File Explorer installed, you will have seen the option to us the app when you tapped on Default notification ringtone above.
ES File Explorer does not let you sample the files, it simply activates the file you tap on. However, once you choose the file, it registers as a notification sound and will be available to choose from the default Android sound chooser.
Changing your notification sound can be fun, what is the craziest notification sound you’ve ever used on your Android device?
Nearly all notification sounds on an iPhone are customizable, but there are notable exceptions. Customized ringtones and notification sounds help users easily identify when they receive a call or notification on their phone. It also helps users personalize their phones according to their choice and taste.
Android phones generally offer significantly more customization options, but Apple has also started adding support for some of those features recently. For example, with iOS 16, Apple introduced customizable lock screens, which lets choose widgets, photo styles, fonts, and more.
On iPhone, a user can customize nearly all notification sounds, including text message tones, calendar alarms, and voicemail alerts. Users can also change notification tones for Apple-specific apps like FaceTime and Mail. However, users can't choose custom notification sounds for most third-party apps, which means the default notification sound is the only option they have for non-Apple applications. Most third-party apps just use the iPhone's default alert tone, while some have their own tones built into the apps. Users can, however, turn their notification sound on or off for third-party apps as needed.
Set Custom Notification Sounds On iPhone
To set a custom notification sound go to 'Settings,' scroll down, and then tap on 'Sound & Haptics.' Under 'Sounds and Vibration Patterns,' select the type of notification that needs to be changed. From the menu, choose the sound that needs to be set as the notification sound. Once an option is chosen, users will see a blue check mark next to it. This method enables users to customize ringtones for incoming calls, as well as notification sounds for texts, voicemails, emails, calendar alerts, reminders, and more.
To disable notification sounds for third-party apps, open 'Settings,' tap on 'Notifications' and then select the target app. If sound notifications are available for the app, it will have a toggle switch for 'Sounds' that just requires toggling on or off for the desired result. Meanwhile, Apple's own apps, such as FaceTime, Mail, and Messages allow users to set their own custom notification sounds. To do this, go to 'Settings' > 'Notifications,' and then choose the target app. From here, tap on 'Sounds' and then select the notification sound from the available options.
In contrast, Android users can change just about all notification sounds on their devices. Not only that, they can also add new custom ringtones or notification sounds, often a short clip of their favorite songs or music. Custom Android ringtones can also be added for voice calls, with different ringtones for different contacts or contact groups, which lets users know immediately who is calling them without having to pick the phone up. Similarly, custom ringtones can also be added for text messages, emails, social media, and just about any app on the smartphone. Overall, there are many more ways to play around with notification settings on Android, but iPhone options are constantly improving.
Change Third-Party App Notification Sounds On iPhone
Apple's Settings app doesn't let users change the notification sound for third-party apps, but there is a workaround for some of them. This mostly applies to messaging apps like WhatsApp, Telegram, Messenger, and Slack. These apps have their own notification tones, and users can change the sounds by going into the settings of the individual apps.
For example, to change the notification sound on WhatsApp, open the app, tap 'Settings' and then 'Notifications.' Tap 'Sounds,' and select a sound from the list. When done, tap 'Save.' WhatsApp lets users choose between different notification sounds for messages or groups, and even allows different notification sounds for specific contacts. To change the notification sound on Telegram, go to Settings and tap 'Notifications and Sounds.' From here, users can change the sound for private chats, group chats, or channels. On Facebook Messenger, tap the profile icon in the top-left corner and tap 'Notifications and sounds.' Tap 'Text tone' and select a sound from the list. Changing the notification tone on Slack is similar. Tap the 'You' tab at the bottom of the screen, tap 'Notifications,' then 'Sound,' and choose a preferred tone. Not all third-party apps offer this feature, but if you want to change notification sound for a specific app on iPhone, it's worth digging into the app's settings to see if there's an option available.
Source: Apple