Can I make a contact ring even on silent?

What does it mean for a phone to be on silent?

When a phone is set to silent or vibrate mode, also known as silent mode, the phone will not ring or vibrate for incoming calls and notifications. This prevents any audible alerts for texts, emails, app notifications, etc. Essentially, silent mode mutes all sounds except for media like music or videos played directly on the device. The screen may still light up to display notifications, but there will be no ringtone, vibration, or other noise made by the phone to signify an incoming call or alert.

Silent mode is useful in situations where noises from your phone would be disruptive, like at the movies, during important meetings, at school or work, or late at night when you don’t want to be disturbed. It allows you to still receive calls and notifications but without disturbing those around you.

Default ringtone behavior on silent

When an iPhone is set to silent mode by flipping the ringer switch, all incoming call and notification ringtones are muted by default. This means no audible ringtones will play, even for incoming calls or messages, when silent mode is activated (source: Select ringtones and vibrations on iPhone). The phone essentially enters a “do not disturb” state where all alerts make no sound. This is the standard function of silent mode on iPhones.

So in general, putting your iPhone into silent mode by sliding the physical ringer switch to the mute position will silence all ringtones, including for incoming calls and notifications. The default behavior is for no audible ringtones to play while in silent mode.

Exceptions for Allowed Ringtones

Even when a phone is set to silent or vibrate mode, certain ringtones and alerts are allowed to play. This is to ensure users don’t miss critical notifications.

Alarms will still sound at their set time, regardless of silent mode. This prevents users from sleeping through important wake up alarms (source).

Emergency and public safety alerts, like AMBER alerts and extreme weather warnings, will also override silent mode so users are notified of danger (source).

On iPhones specifically, repeated calls from the same number within a 3 minute period will ring through silent mode after the first call (source). This acts as an emergency override.

While most normal ringtones and notifications are silenced, these exceptions help ensure users don’t miss critically important alerts and notifications when their phone is on vibrate or silent.

Contact Exceptions

Despite a phone being set to silent or vibrate mode, certain contacts can be allowed to override these settings and ring out loud. This allows users to ensure they never miss a call or message from specific important contacts, while generally keeping their phone silent.

On iPhone, this can be accomplished by editing a contact and selecting a unique ringtone under the “Alert Tone” option. This special ringtone will play even when the phone is set to silent. According to an Apple support thread, the contact’s ringtone must be a purchased song or other non-default ringtone option.

For Android, contacts can also be set to break through silent mode by assigning them a unique ringtone in the Contacts app. As described in an iToolab guide, accessing the contact’s options and editing the ringtone field is the way to enable emergency bypass. Just be sure not to use the default ringtone, or it won’t override silent.

By carefully selecting which contacts have the special privilege to break through Do Not Disturb and silent modes, users can maintain discretion while ensuring they won’t miss anything truly vital.

Steps to allow contact ringtone overrides

One way to allow certain contacts to ring even when your iPhone is set to silent mode is to assign them a distinctive ringtone. Here are the steps:

1. Open the Contacts app and select the contact you want to be able to ring on silent.
2. Tap Edit in the upper-right corner.
3. Scroll down and tap Ringtone.

4. Select a ringtone that is different from your normal or silent ringtone.
5. Tap Done.

Now when you switch your iPhone to silent mode, calls and notifications from that contact will play the unique ringtone assigned to them rather than being completely silent. This allows you to identify calls from specific important contacts even when your phone is otherwise muted.

Source: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/253347153

Other custom silent mode adjustments

You can further customize your iPhone’s silent mode behavior using Do Not Disturb settings. The Do Not Disturb feature allows you to silence calls, alerts and notifications for a set period of time. You can access Do Not Disturb in Settings > Do Not Disturb.

In Do Not Disturb settings, you can set a schedule for when you want Do Not Disturb to turn on and off automatically. For example, you may want to activate it overnight while you’re sleeping. You can set Do Not Disturb to be on during certain hours, like from 10pm to 7am daily [1].

You can also allow calls or messages from certain people to override Do Not Disturb and ring your phone even when it’s in silent mode. Go to Settings > Do Not Disturb > Allow Calls From to choose which contacts can get through.

Overall, Do Not Disturb gives you granular control over which notifications and calls can override silent mode on your iPhone. By customizing these options, you can ensure the most important alerts come through even when your ringer is off.

Android Custom Silent Modes

Android offers several ways to customize your phone’s silent mode to allow exceptions for certain contacts or apps. Here are some of the key options:

You can set your phone to always allow calls and notifications from starred contacts even when silent mode is on. To enable this, go to Settings > Sound > Do Not Disturb preferences. Tap on the option for “Allow calls” and select “From starred contacts only”. This will override silent mode for any favorites marked with a star.

Many Android phones also allow you to specify exceptions on an app-by-app basis. Go to Settings > Notifications > App notifications. Tap on any app and you can override silent mode by changing the sound to “Override Do Not Disturb”. This is useful for ensuring certain apps like messaging or email can make noise even if your phone is otherwise silenced.

Third party apps like AutoSilent also provide finer controls over custom silent modes based on time, location, events and more. These can allowcontacts or apps to ring during selective silenced hours you define.

Using these Android options, you can easily tailor silent modes to avoid disturbing noise while still allowing priority contacts or apps to ring when needed.

Third party apps for extra silent customization

While Android and iOS provide basic silent/vibrate/ring options, third party apps can unlock more customization. Apps like Silent Mode Toggle on Android offer additional silent mode preferences like customizing the background, color, transparency and size of the silent toggle icon.

For iOS, apps like Triple Silent provide granular control over silent mode with options to allow calls or messages from certain contacts. As noted in a Reddit thread, these third party iOS apps can override the system silent mode to selectively allow chosen alerts through.

So while Android and iOS have basic silent mode options, third party apps provide power users more customization for specialized silent preferences.

Important Alerts to Consider

When your phone is set to silent or do not disturb mode, it’s easy to miss important calls and notifications. However, there are some alerts you likely want to receive, even when your phone is muted.

One of the most critical type of alerts to allow on silent is from medical contacts or emergency services. For example, you’ll want to be notified if your doctor, hospital, or other healthcare provider tries reaching you regarding medical results, appointments, or other time-sensitive information. Similarly, it could be dangerous to miss a call from 911 or emergency responders if you are expecting them or need urgent help.

Therefore, many recommend configuring your phone settings so certain trusted contacts like your doctor, hospital, medical clinic, ambulance services, 911 emergency services, and other emergency contacts can override silent or do not disturb modes on your mobile device. This allows their calls to ring through even when your phone is muted, helping ensure you don’t miss vitally important alerts.

Most modern smartphones, including iPhones and Android devices, have settings to designate VIP contacts that can bypass muted modes. Check your device capabilities and contact list to set this up for key medical and emergency numbers.

When to use silent selectively

There are certain situations where having your phone on silent is the courteous and appropriate thing to do. Places like movie theaters, libraries, houses of worship, schools, and other noise-sensitive environments can be easily disrupted by ringtones and notification sounds. It’s best to switch your phone to silent mode before entering these locations both as a courtesy to others as well as to avoid embarrassment.

Meetings and performances are other key times to enable silent mode. The sounds of incoming calls and alerts are disruptive and distracting for all participants. Having your phone make noise during important work meetings, classes, weddings, funerals, speeches, or other events draws unnecessary attention.

Silencing your phone removes these disruptions and allows others to focus without interruption. Depending on the situation, you may want to take additional steps like turning off vibration as well. With your phone on silent, you can still check for critical notifications by glancing at the screen without disturbing what’s happening around you.