Introduction
Ah, the Crazy Frog. No, please don't stop reading. We all hate the Crazy Frog. In fact, the amount of Crazy Frog hatred we've witnessed in the HEXUS.community has been... strangely enjoyable. It seems people are tired of both overly aggressive marketing campaigns and phone 'personalisations' that make your phone sound like everyone elses.
The ringtone market has exploded recently. Modern phones, much more powerful than previous models, can deliver much better sounding, full audio (no MIDI here, sir) ring tones. That presents an opportunity for each mobile phone owner to have their own personal ringtone. However, there's a problem. In purchasing a ringtone from a website, magazine or off the telly, you're obtaining something that other people are guaranteed to have. Where's the personal touch in that?
Enter Xingtone, a company offering a refreshing change to the tiresome world of conventional ringtone culture. Xingtone's software allows you to load an audio file from your computer or CD, chop it up to get your favourite bit, edit it a little and then send it to your phone via the Internet. You're not downloading something pre-made, you're not composing your own music, you're creating a tone from your own personal media library.
HEXUS was invited to try out Xingtone, following their recent UK launch. By either fate or luck, a ringtone-hating reviewer was tasked with taking it for a spin. Can this software convert Steve 'my phone is permanently on silent' Kerrison?