How to convert any random song into a ringtone for iPhone or Android

Phones of today come in two categories: smart and dumb. With a host of attractive and innovative features, smartphones are the first choice of the modern generation. One of the exciting things you can do with your new smartphones is to change the ring tone to one of your choice. The selection of ring tones available on your device is usually pretty vast, but there will be times that you will want to have a song of your choice as your ring tone. Songs that are on iTunes can be converted into a ring tone for $0.99, which basically means buying the entire song. However, there are ways that you can create a ring tone from a song of your choice without having to shell out money for it. Here is a step-by-step guide that tells you how you can do it for free for iPhones as well as Android phones.

Complexity Level: Basic to moderate

Time Required: 5 minutes
Resources Required:
For iPhone
1. An unprotected .mp3 or .m4a file
2. Access to iTunes
For Android

1. Am .mp3 song file of your choice

2. Access to Android Market

Instructions
For iPhone
1. Go to iTunes and locate the song that you want to use as a ring tone. Identify a section of the song that you want to use which should be less than 30 seconds long. Make a note of the exact start and end time of that section.
2. Select “get info” from the context menu by right clicking the file, and under the options tab, enter the start and stop times for your ring tone selection. Hit ok.
3. Right click the song again and and select “convert selection to AAC.” If this option does not show up and it prompts you to save in other formats, go to iTunes preference, and change the import settings option to AAC encoder. Now you should be able to convert it to AAC.
4. The edited selection will now show up in iTunes with a smaller size. Right click it and select “show in Windows Explorer.” Change the file type from .m4a to .m4r in WIndows.
5. Go back to iTunes, and delete the shortened file that you created. Go to the original song file and uncheck the start and stop times you entered for it.

6. Go to the iTunes menu, select File and then Add File to Library and select the .m4r file that you have saved. Since you have renamed the file extension, it will allow you to add the file.

7. Sync your phone and you will find the song showing up in your ring tones folder. Now you can set it as your ring tone using your phone options.

For Android

1. You will need to download an open source ring tone editor from the Android Market. One of the better and popular ones is Ringdroid. This is a free app that has been around for ages. You will also need to have the song file on your device.
2. When you open Ringdroid you will find that it displays all audio files on your device. Select the song file that you want to use as your ring tone and load it.
3. Use the selection sliders to select the start and stop points of your ring tone. You can use the play button to hear how it sounds.
4. Once you are happy with your selection, click on Save and name your file.
5. Now your chosen song will show up in your phone’s ring tone menu. use your phone options to set it as your ring tone.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use .m4a files as my ring tone on Android devices?

No. You will need to save the file as an .mp3 or an .m4a file in order to use it on an Android device.

Quick tips

  1. You can set up different songs as ring tones for different contacts or groups. Just navigate to the contacts app, select the contact, and from the menu, tap on options, and select “Choose Ring Tone.”

Things to watch out for

  1. Remember to keep your phone in silent mode when it is not appropriate to have your funky ring tones start playing. The last thing you want is for your phone to start ringing out an embarrassing song in the middle of a meeting or during a visit to someone at the hospital.

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