March 5, 2012

Get Alert Tones and Ringtones for your devices via the Tone Store.

Want to assign just the right ringtones for the friends who call you most? Or alerts that lighten problems by making you laugh (or at least smile)? Browse the Tone Store in iTunes on your devices and sample the possibilities. To get directly there on iPhone and iPod touch, tap More on the lower right in iTunes and then Tones. In iTunes on iPad tap Music on the lower left, then Genres on the upper left, then Tones (just below All at the top). Once in the store you can freely browse through and sample the possibilities -- ringtones long enough to give you the chance to answer, alert tones short enough not to try your patience, and yes they can be used interchangeably. New possibilities (like the recently announced exclusive Beatles Ringtones) appear regularly.

You can also browse the Tone Store by starting from what you want to use the sound for. In the Contacts app, for instance, you can customize ringtones for your friends by editing their cards in the Contacts app and picking new ringtones and alert tones for them. When you tap one, a list of what's already in your library will appear with a Buy More Tones button at the top that will take you to the Tone Store to look for new ones. Likewise for sounds you want to apply by default for general situations. Tap General and then Sounds in the Settings app and pick what you want to change, and again, scroll to the top for a Buy More Tones button that will take you to the Tone Store.