Why doesn't my phone ring?

April 2, 2017 8:10 PM

Why am I seeing calls on my phone even though the phone hasn't 'rung'?

iPhone 6, max volume, side switch ON (i.e. not mute), ringtone sharp & clear, phone close at hand ~24/7.
Complication: it rings for some calls.
Wha' happen? (per Fred Willard)

posted by LonnieK to Computers & Internet (11 answers total)

Best answer: Is your "Do Not Disturb" set to screen some calls?
posted by lazuli at 8:27 PM on April 2, 2017 [2 favorites]

There are also apps that will let you call directly to voicemail, and avoid ringing the phone at all. Slydial is probably the one that is best-known.
posted by Ostara at 8:36 PM on April 2, 2017 [1 favorite]

Standard first answer: Try a hard reset (hold power and home buttons down at same time till it goes off and silver apple appears on screen). IPhones just do odd things sometimes, and that often helps.
posted by old_growler at 8:58 PM on April 2, 2017

I'll second that it might be a do not disturb setting. I once accidentally put my spouse on that setting and didn't figure it out for months, so it's possible to do this without meaning to. Also, make sure you didn't activate the do not disturb setting overall - if the little moon is highlighted in the menu that appears when you swipe up, un-highlight it.
posted by centrifugal at 9:11 PM on April 2, 2017 [1 favorite]

I have this happen a few times a month, and I'm not a frequent phone user. I get it from all kinds of places—family members, friends, places calling to remind me of an appointment—so I haven't traced it to everything, but it's been that way for years. (I use an iPhone 5s, but I remember it happening well before that.)
posted by Polycarp at 9:57 PM on April 2, 2017

That's happened to me now and then. I've always attributed it to carrier weirdness, like when my spouse or I will send the other a text and it doesn't appear until hours later. Not actually sure it's their fault (Verizon) but since it happens so intermittently, it has the feel of a network adequacy issue.
posted by lakeroon at 9:57 PM on April 2, 2017

Is this happening from specific places, or in general? There are a few places in our house where our cell phones get very poor, erratic service. Quite often I'll find missed calls, texts, and voicemails when I get up out of my comfy chair and walk to the kitchen.
posted by dws at 10:43 PM on April 2, 2017

I don't know if this a feature iPhone have copied (I'm not even sure its a feature Samsung have kept) but when this was happening to me it was because my phone was face-down. I didn't even figure it out until I saw a TV advert for my phone describing this amazing new feature where you just have to flip the phone facedown to be in "do not disturb" mode.
posted by missmagenta at 12:12 AM on April 3, 2017 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Bingo. Do not disturb was on. How, I know not.
Thx all!
posted by LonnieK at 4:06 AM on April 3, 2017 [1 favorite]

Bingo. Do not disturb was on. How, I know not.
Thx all!

You probably accidently turned it on from Control Center, happens a lot.
posted by sixfootaxolotl at 8:59 AM on April 3, 2017 [1 favorite]

Yeah, I've fixed this problem for several people previously. You're not alone!
posted by lazuli at 2:00 PM on April 3, 2017 [1 favorite]