Simple trick to know who’s calling without picking up your phone
I’m psychic. I know who’s calling me without even looking at my phone. I’m just kidding. If I really were psychic, I’d know all the winning lottery numbers and be living on a private island in the Maldives.
The trick is to give each of your contacts a custom vibration. This way, you know from the discrete buzzes if this is a call you can’t miss or should ignore. Think of it as the quiet version of custom ringtones since so many of us keep our phones silenced these days.
This is a pet peeve of mine. You know who you are. In public, from your phone comes … incessant sounds from games or playing a video so loudly everyone has to listen to it. Stop that. (Was that a collective “Thank you, Kim,” I just heard?)
On your iPhone
Here’s how to set up custom vibrations the easy and fun way:
- Go into your Contacts, tap the person’s name, select Edit and then Text Tones.
- Tap Vibration and select one from the list.
- Have fun with it. Maybe you select the heartbeat vibration for your partner and the alert vibration for your kid away at school.
You can use this same menu to give each contact a custom ringtone and text alert sound. You might as well go all the way while messing around in settings.
On your Android
Every Android manufacturer and model is slightly different, so your steps might differ slightly.
- In your Contacts menu, select More and then Vibration Pattern.
From now on, you’ll know exactly who is calling without picking up your phone.
I phoned out about it
Trick to avoid annoying callers: Assign a silent ringtone
When you do a lot of work on your phone, spam callers can be the bane of your existence. You’ll be in the zone, working hard and expecting a business call when the phone rings. When you pick it up, a robot says, “Hello. We’re calling to talk to you about your car’s extended warranty.”
Easy ways to create custom ringtones for Android and iPhone
In a world where everyone uses the same apps to communicate, it’s nice to stand out. Now that we’re more reliant on our devices than ever before, why not make the best of it?
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