A ringtone is the sound made by a mobile or cell phone to indicate an incoming call. Technically, a ringtone is a program that activates the phone's speakers anytime it picks text messages or incoming call signals. Ringtones are based on a programming language called Ringing Tone Text Transfer Language (RTTTL) which was developed by Nokia.

Purpose of ringtones is to give a unique ring to a mobile phone so that it can be distinguished in an environment that has lots of mobile phone users. Almost all the newer phones from manufacturers like Motorola, Samsung, Siemens, Sony-Ericsson, LG, Sanyo, Panasonic now have ringtones capabilities. Ringtones are basically monophonic ringtones and polyphonic ringtones.

Early phones had the ability to play only monophonic ring tones. It comprises of a series of sequential tones at varying frequencies.

The difference between a regular monophonic ringtone and a polyphonic ringtone is equivalent to the difference between a solo flute player and the whole orchestra. Polyphonic ringtones can be played on mobile phones which are capable of playing more than one tone simultaneously. All the latest models support polyphonic ringtones. Many phones are now able to play more complex polytones; up to 128 individual notes with different instruments are played simultaneously to give a more realistic musical sound.

While polyphonic tones were better than monotones, they still sounded more like an old video game than the music they were patterned after.

An Mp3 is a compressed audio file. MP3 ringtones are near to CD quality sound. Also called master tones or true tones, these are usually bits of a real song, using your favourite music to alert you to a call. Voice ringtones, sound effects, and instrumental or lyrical music are all available as MP3 ringtones today. There is a wide variety of Mp3 ringtones available today. From Mozart to Madonna, the Beatles to Britney Spears, or even commercial jingles, national anthems, cartoon themes, gospel music, nursery rhymes, even beat poetry.

Most cell phones come with some ringtones pre-installed, but you can find the ones you really like out on the wireless web. There are several methods for downloading ringtones. You can subscribe to a service that will send them to your phone weekly for a fee. Or you can download new ringtones from your favourite band's website. Polyphonic ringtones are also available free of cost but there are some select ringtones that are also chargeable. Now a days these ringtones cost anywhere between 99c and $3. Some sites charge on a membership basis but you can download sample ringtones just for registering.