I put my Android phone out of silent mode and started using AI ringtones, and I love it

As someone who grew up in the 90s, I can tell you that ringtones were once a major status symbol. It meant you had a modern phone capable of such magic. Unfortunately, it took less than a decade for custom ringtones to go from impressive to what many consider tacky. Custom ringtones haven’t been helped by the proliferation of smartphones and the bombardment of notifications.

Although not as popular as they once were, ringtones are a great way to add a little flair to your phone, as long as you don’t go overboard. There are many sources of ringtones these days, from dedicated apps to websites that allow you to download ringtone files. Many phones can even take your own tunes and turn them into ringtones automatically.

Honestly, there are too many ringtone options these days. As a result, finding the right one has become a bit of a challenge. So I decided to turn to AI to see if it could help me find my perfect ringtone match.

For the past half decade, I’ve stopped using ringtones entirely, relying instead on silent mode with vibrate on. I did this for several reasons. First, I’m tired of hearing noise all the time. Second, my phone was almost always in my pocket or within reach.

Over the past year, I’ve made it a point to leave my phone more often on short trips, and I usually keep it in one room when I’m not using it at home. While I don’t get a lot of important calls, the occasional client, friend, or family member does, and I’ll admit that keeping the phone out of reach results in a missed call here and there.

I’ve already set it up so the contacts I allow (work, friends, family, and some businesses like my doctor’s office) can call first. My next step was to create custom rings based on categories and for certain preferred contacts. Initially, I looked through the free options and found many apps. I tried a few generic sounds, but none of the ringtones I came up with really felt like “my own”. I also found it a bit difficult to search through all the options.

That’s when I decided to turn to AI to find something that suited my strengths and personality. I think it’s a fun way to get custom ringtones, but keep in mind that AI has its own pitfalls, including the fact that your custom state will almost certainly scratch ideas from real, copyrighted material, even if the result seems fresh and unique.

It’s important to note that the AI ​​techniques below are not intended to generate quick ringtones from actual full songs. Those hoping to get real songs from major artists know that downloading an official app or ringtone is the only legal way to do it.

There are many apps on Google Play that allow you to create AI ringtones, and while some do the job, most are ad-free, and the performance is mixed at best. And then there is Zej. This app already exists and it’s easier to believe by comparison. Zedge was originally based on wallpapers, but these days you’ll find that you have a ton of pre-made ringtones. Of course, what interests us here are its AI generation capabilities.

In addition to AI-generated wallpapers, Zedge makes it easy to create custom ringtones. The interface is also easy to use. There is a prompt window where you can give the AI ​​the keywords or description you are looking for. There are also easy tabs for genres and other details, such as mood or recommendations, to help you further refine your query.

Unfortunately, Zedge is not without some flaws. First, even if it’s reasonably secure, any app that allows user submissions can have privacy and security flaws, so it’s important to keep that in mind. The biggest drawback is aggressive ads. You’re limited to how many ringtones you can make, and you’ll have to watch an ad to do it, but you’ll get one free gift. Even after he’s done creating, you’ll often see him shoot a second ad your way.

With the ad-free tier, you can unlock this experience, which offers unlimited ringtone creation without the need to watch a video. If you need short-term access, the app costs just $0.99 for a one-week pass. There’s also a lifetime option for just $11.99.

As for the quality of the product it produces? It’s not bad, by any means.

First, I asked him to make a Zelda-style song. I explained that I was looking for a unique song that had a similar energy to the LoZ classics. Here’s what he gave me:

I tried to make a funny ringtone of how my mom would call:

I have to admit, this was one of my favorite things to do with Zedge, and it was better than a similar thing I did later with Gemini.

While Zedge is an easy way to jump in, it limits you to a few ringtones per day and lets you watch really long ads that are hard to get out of. To be honest, Gemini is a good choice for most users. While its free tier is too limited, Google’s AI plans start at around $5, and you can do a lot more than create ringtones here.

The only real downside is the lack of easy tabs to help you start selecting genre, mood, and other aspects. Honestly, you don’t need them. Just type a description of what you’re looking for. It may take a try or two, but you’ll find the results are as good or better than what Zedge can produce.

Where Gemini really shines is nailing some very unique vibes. Just like Zedge, I asked him to create a song with “a big Zelda-like energy, but not really a game song, just similar vibes.” Here is the result:

I think Gemini handled this perfectly and it was the default call for my daughter. It seemed closer to what I was looking for than Zedge’s attempt to make a similar ringtone with Zelda vibes.

However, Gemini is not always good. Like Zedge, I made a ringtone for my mom with the same instructions. It wasn’t bad, but I think Zedge did a little better.

Ultimately, these are just two ways to create ringtones, and while I recommend both of them, I personally find Gemini to be the best way to go. Still, they’re each worth a shot.