Custom Text Message Ringtones in iOS 4.2

Apple’s coming iOS 4.2 update promises quite a lot. Wireless printing on the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad will all be making an appearance. However, some of the actual phone functions on the iPhone 4 are still lacking. I ran into a huge amount of frustration the other day trying to send a photograph via Bluetooth to a friend from my iPod touch. (Come on Apple, I could do this years ago on a dumb phone from Motorola.) At least one thing Apple iPhone fans have been complaining about for years will get a much needed fix. The new iOS 4.2 will finally allow users to assign specific ringtones for text messages received. There is a catch however.

Basically, iOS 4.2 will finally let iPhone users to finally assign specific ringtones to play based on who text messages them. The catch I just mentioned? Only default ringtones in iOS will work. Not even ringtones that you have purchased from iTunes can be set to play when someone text messages you. This is a huge bummer. However, keep in mind that the version of iOS 4.2 being tested right now by developers is still the first beta version. Many of the promised features like wireless printing are not quite fully operational yet and some developers are having trouble even installing iOS 4.2 beta 1 onto their iOS devices. Long story short? There is still hope that any ringtone can be set to play for specific contracts when they text message you. Apple might not have gotten around to polishing this feature yet.

I love the fact that Apple seems to be making some improvements into the regular phone parts of iOS. Despite being a fan of Apple’s products and a blogger about them, I have to admit that it is not exactly the very best phone for the phone part of smartphone. Hopefully, Apple decides that it needs to start putting in better functionality for parts of its iPhone that are not just money making schemes for iTunes. If you are buying a $200 phone with contract you deserve to be able to set up custom ringtones for each person who calls or texts you.

Let me know how you feel about custom text message ringtones in iOS 4.2. This feature being implemented far too late in iOS? Apple going to try to make more money off of everyone through iTunes by making people buy specific text message ringtones? Tell me in the comments.

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Comments

13 Responses to “Custom Text Message Ringtones in iOS 4.2”
  1. Anonymous says:

    I bought ring tones then I found out it’s only for calling it pisses me off.

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  2. Anonymous says:

    It pissed me off

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  3. Anonymous says:

    have a commando got ring tone for text message now bummed i spent money on a song i cant use the way i wanted

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  4. MB says:

    I agree and am disappointed since I purchased ringtones for text messages and then realized I could not assign them to contacts. . .HUGE BUMMER!!!

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  5. Jai says:

    I have previously owned Blackberrys & Android phones. Recently switched to iPhone because I love other Apple products. I live in Korea, so here you have to pay full price for a phone. You don’t get discounts because you sign a 2yr contract. So for the money I spent on my iPhone, it is EXTREMELY disappointing that I can’t do something as simple as assign custom ringtones for SMS.

    Anyhow, I did find some tutorials on YouTube on how to make your own ringtones for SMS. It’s a confusing process at first & you can only replace the sound of the original SMS tones that come on the phone. So when you make your custom tone it’ll still have the same name as the old tones, just a new sound.

    wonderhowto.com/how-to-change-iphone-message-text-sms-tone-299362/

    Hopefully I was helpful…

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  6. bo says:

    have 4.2.1, it sux

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  7. Anonymous says:

    Text messaging technology is available today that allows for including a “Reply-All” option with all multi-recipient messages. A single click by the recipient of such a message directs the reply to all the original recipients. Imagine how this changes the entire SMS usage model.

    Amazingly, neither Apple, Google or RIM have shown the slightest desire to include this technology in their products.

    Time for consumers to demand access to Smashtalk technology. smashtalk.net

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  8. Cdavis says:

    Ok, so most people end up jailbreaking to get this feature, and have doen so since the iPhone was released. Its nice that they aree allowing you to customize it a little bit, but why limit the text tones to the ios built in ones? Apple has control issues apparently. I love my iPhone 4, and i think iOS4.2 is going to bring soem very nice new features to iPhone and i cant wait to use it on my iPad, but this is an example of half-assing it, so just do it RIGHT Apple, dont give useless features!

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  9. Ian says:

    I find it impossible to tell all the different tones apart. 1 for email, 1 for text, 1 for facebook, several others for other push services. Why can’t it just say “ding ding, you’ve received a text message” with an optional… “ding ding, you’ve received a text message from Joe Blogg’s”

    I really shouldn’t have to memorise what each tone means

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  10. Gark says:

    STILL BUMMED! I just spent a sizeable amount of time to get a custom ring of R2D2 screaming for a text alert because that would have been obviously awesome, right? But now I find that I cant assign it to text message alerts. I’m seriously bummed- and pretty pissed. I still love my iPhone 4 and about 95% amazing. Its just got a couple screw-ball quirks like that that seem rediculous. I can find my way out of the woods but can’t assign custom text tones. It’s just lame

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  11. Anonymous says:

    Yea there is a HELL OF ALOT OF THINGS THIS “SMART PHONE” does not do for it to be the “TOP” smart phone!!!!! I dont understand why apple would be just implementing the custom ringtone for text messages!…. IN ADDITION IT WOULD BE AWESOME IF WE COULD CHOOSE FROM MORE THAN ONE KEYBOARD…. I.e SWYPE WOULD BE AWESOME!….. APPLE NEEDS TO OFFER MORE FEATURES ON THESE NOT SO SMART PHONES….. SOMETIMES IT’S THE SIMPLE FEATURES THAT MAKE U THE HAPPIEST!!!!

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  12. Anonymous says:

    Open a new market for custom Text Messages.. I HATE the fact that so many people have the same tone… Dinner time the phone bleeps off a Text message and I have 4 people going for their phone… C’mon Apple…

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  13. anonymous says:

    It’s about bloody time, It’s only something that iPhone users have been asking for since Gen1.

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