Video ringtones arrive

FIRST WE had ringtones which were then followed by ringback/callback tones and now we have video ringtones. It had to happen eventually and presently Vringo is offering such a treat for free.

The idea is simple. Instead of merely playing a specific tune when one of your friends or family calls, you can set up the mobile phone to play a preset video instead.

There are certain advantages to this because you can instantly discern from the graphics as well as the audio exactly who is calling you.

That's the good news. The bads news is the lengths that you have to go to in order to get Vringo working on a mobile phone.
First off, it's necessary to download the associated software client. Vringo has built client software for a very wide range of smartphones and it's easy to discover if yours is included by visiting the web site here.

The catch is that Vringo requires a live data session to be running in order to function properly. The INQ would have thought a GRPS session would suffice but the company recommends a full 3G link.
Consequently it currently doesn't work well on Cdmaone networks like Sprint and Verizon but is compatible with GSM networks like Cingular/AT&T and T-Mobile.

At present the whole service is still at a beta stage so everything – including a large number of impressively crafted video ringtones – is available for free.

Once you downloaded a few video ringtones and set up your mates in the buddies list, Vringo does actually work quite well.
The only snag is that when the INQ tried it, the service overides other settings. So it actually masks CLI (caller identity) as well as text to speech recognition – our N95 is set up to try to pronounce a caller's name, for example.

Vringo is good but the INQ wonders whether most people would be bothered to go through all the hassle it takes to get video ringtones to work properly. µ

L'INQ
Vringo mobile site