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Provides: iPhone ringtone customization

Format: Download

Developer: Ambrosia Software

Minimum Requirements: Mac OS X v10.4.10, iPhone

Processor Compatibility: Native

Retail Price: $15.00

Availability: Out now

Version Reviewed: 1.0.4

People do enjoy their ringtones. I get that. I mean, maybe not to the point that I can understand why it's such a gigantic business, but I see the appeal of customizing one's technology to one's personal tastes. Custom ringtones are like iPod skins. They're like personalized license plates. They give people hints as to who we are. After all...why do you suppose there was never a push or need for custom ringtones on land lines? Because the only people who ever heard them ring were one's immediate family. They already know their dad is a middle-aged, overweight white guy trying to compensate for where he is in life by driving a Hummer and making The Miracles' "Love Machine" his ringtone.

Sophie, Sam...if I ever become that dad, hit me in the head with whatever you're carrying.

This obsession is why there was such an outcry against the iPhone when it was released without the ability to create or add custom ringtones. Considering that most of the supplied ringtones were completely useless, it even bugged me. Hacks quickly followed, and Apple eventually added the ability to create ringtones using iTunes purchases...for a price. And yet the easiest, most trouble free, and cheapest method comes not from Apple, but from Ambrosia Software with iToner.

This software is actually difficult to review because there really is nothing to review. You plug in your iPhone, launch iToner, drag songs into its window, and click the sync button. That's it.

Your songs are now on your iPhone, accessible from the same area and just above Apple's provided ringtones. From within the iPhone interface, you assign them the same way you would any others.

From within the iToner interface, you can play the file for a sound sample, and you can remove it from the iPhone by clicking the red minus symbol and syncing once again.

There's also an Advanced tab that allows you to manage the ringtones manually (the default, which I recommend sticking with) or to have iToner automatically sync with your iTunes playlists. This options if fine, as you can sync with only one playlist at a time. That doesn't give you a lot of freedom, but it makes it easier to manage. Just create a playlist of Ringtones, copy your choices to there, and click a button to get them on your iPhone.

The drawback to this is that the files have to be in iTunes. As you can see from my geeky choices above, my ringtone selections aren't exactly the kind of things I'm likely to listen to on my iPod. But, see, that's the beauty of iToner; your ringtones can be anything you want, not just music that's available through iTunes. Granted, iToner doesn't give you the option to select only a portion of a song to be the ringtone, but you can take care of that by cropping the portion you want in an MP3 or AAC (iToner's supported sound files) compatible application such as QuickTime or Sound Studio 3 and saving it to your system. If you keep all of these in a single folder, it's as easy to manage to with drag and drop as are iTunes playlists. In fact, it's easier.

Even better, if you have a sound editing program such as Sound Studio 3, you don't need to be stuck with music or other audio files from the net; you can create your own snippets. No need to remember what ringtone you assigned to your wife if her ringtone is her actual recorded voice telling you to pick up the phone. You can even get really creative. Record someone chewing popcorn loudly and make that your default, then you won't have to turn off your ringer in a movie theater.

Because seriously, people; cell phones in theaters are annoying, but they're not half as annoying as someone sitting behind you chomping on popcorn for two hours straight.

How does Apple feel about iToner? I don't know. iToner was out before Apple announced their custom ringtones, and it's still out. Plus, Ambrosia has been quick to release updates when needed after iPhone firmware updates. This isn't a hack, after all, it's just software that acts as a gateway between your computer and your iPhone, and it does it brilliantly.

At only $15.00, every—and yes, I really mean that literally—every single iPhone owner should have a copy of iToner.

Even you, you Hummer drivin' R&B listenin' cell phone yellin' 45-year-old. Remember that, for better or worse, people will take your ringtone as an example of who you are. And unless you're happy with that (as I obviously am in my geekdom) I suggest staying away from the dance music.