Cell Phone Ring Tones and the Mosquito: Why They're Such a Hit
By Nathalie Fiset

Your cell phone .... it has been around for quite sometime and it is there to stay. There are many features that would seem impossible to generations of past but what we now actually enjoy. What are these special features? It could be that your cell phone is equipped with a video camera with 3.0 megapixels, or it could be the built-in Windows 5.0. Or it could simply be, your cell phone ring tones.

Cell phone ring tones history all began with the Nokia tune that was originally composed by Francisco Tarrega, a musician from Spain. It was then called the Gran Vals. Cell phone ring tones were originally monophonic. This means that only one note is being played at a given time.

There were, and there still are, ring tones that come with the phone as you purchase it. The earlier reproductions of cellular phones had composers that were built-in with the models. This was not something that the market really appreciated. It soon became a big flop.

In the year 2002, a major breakthrough in cell phone ring tone history took place. Nokia developed a phone that could play ringtones. The Nokia 3510 was the first cell phone that was introduced to have done that.

By 2003, more and more cell phone companies adopted the use of polytones. With this came further development such as the Groovetunes by Motorola and the True Tones by Nokia. Web sites soon began to offer cell phone ring tones that featured the voices of singers with their hit songs.

Nowadays, downloading a cell phone ring tone is as easy as accessing a web site and choosing from an array of songs. With the use of the Bluetooth technology, you can now download songs from your personal computer to your phone. Easy and amazing!

And since we are talking about cell phone ring tones, why, it's impossible to miss mentioning the famous 'Mosquito ring tone'. This, if you do not already know, is the ring tone that can't be heard by the regular adult. A teenager can actually receive a text message without the adult ever knowing that a message arrived. And no, this is not a technology that uses vibrating batteries or any vibra features. It is an audible tone, but again, only the young can hear it. Here's why:

The Mosquito ring tone became a big hit among teenagers because of the ban on cell phone usage during school hours. It was not originally created for teenagers to use by its inventor, Howard Stapleton. In fact, it's the opposite. It was created to ward off youngsters and keep them from loitering in front of stores.

The teenagers, as ingenious as they usually are, used this to their advantage. The tone was copied and was made into a cell phone ring tone. And since cell phones aren't supposed to be used at school, most teenagers keep track of their messages right under the noses of their teachers, thanks to the mosquito ring tone.

The science behind this amazing ring tone is the natural tendency of humans to become less capable of hearing sounds as they age. This is known as presbycusis (also known as aging ear). Since the mosquito ring tone comes in with 17 kilohertz, most adults are unable to hear it, more so with people who are beyond 40 or 50 years.

Imagine this. The highest note on a piano is at 4 kilohertz. Everyone, as long as they can hear, is able to hear the highest note on a piano. 50-59 year old adults can no longer hear sounds beyond 11 kilohertz. For the age group 40-49 years old, they are unable to hear beyond 12 kilohertz. For 30-39 year olds, they can't hear beyond the level of 14 kilohertz. Now, the teenagers from 18-24 are better able to hear sounds because they can hear sounds that are as high as 16 kilohertz and beyond!

Cell phone ring tones are here to stay. They show your personality, they show your style. But no matter what, the basic use of ring tones is still to get your attention when a call or text message arrives. Whether you would show simplicity or eccentricity in getting your attention, would be up to you.