One of the reasons as to why you missed some important calls is because your phone is not ringing. This should not be a problem if you purposely put your phone in mute as you don’t want to be disturb at the moment. But if your phone just won’t ring even if it is not set to mute, then that’s already a different story. This is one of the problems encountered by some users of the iPhone 7.
Purportedly, iPhone 7 users were confused and likewise frustrated as they found out later that they already missed several phone calls because their iPhone did not ring even when not muted. Why does the iPhone stops ringing and what should be done to fix the problem? These are the main questions that this post will try to address. If you are routed to this page while searching for some help to deal with pertinent issue on the same device, then read on to get help. Feel free to refer to this post as it highlights some recommended workarounds and potential solutions to a problem on the iPhone 7 that won’t ring.
Before going any further though, if you have other concerns with your new iPhone, make sure you drop by our iPhone 7 troubleshooting page for we have already started supporting the device. Moreover, if you need further assistance, you can always contact us by completing our iPhone issues questionnaire and providing us with sufficient information about the problem.
ALSO READ: How to fix an Apple iPhone that is not ringing
Possible reasons as to why your iPhone doesn’t ring
When your iPhone won’t ring, it is likely due to a damaged speaker, Do Not Disturb feature is enabled, ringer is turned off, ringtone issue, or the incoming call is from a blocked phone number on your iPhone. Your chance of getting the problem fixed is higher if you start working on the aforementioned factors. So let’s get straight to the point and begin troubleshooting.
Highlighted below are generic solutions and suggested workarounds used to deal with audio problems, particularly on an iPhone 7 that is not ringing.
First method: Check your iPhone speaker and make sure that it is working.
You can find the speaker at the bottom of your iPhone. The speaker is used for every sound your phone makes like playing music, watching videos, as well as for playing and hearing ringtone for incoming calls. If you are certain that the ringer is turned on but still you could not hear your iPhone ringing as intended, it’s possible that the iPhone speaker is not working. To rule out this possibility, increase the volume then try to play some music or YouTube video. If you hear the audio fine then the problem is not on the speaker. But if you don’t hear any sound coming out as you play the audio or video and that you’ve set the volume up loud, then a broken speaker on the iPhone is most likely the culprit.
Second method: Check the Ring/Silent switch.
Considering its location, the Ring/Silent switch can easily be flipped even without you knowing. Thus, it is possible that your iPhone ringer is off and so your iPhone won’t ring. To make sure this isn’t the causing the problem, take a look at the Ring/Silent switch on the left side of your iPhone. If you see a small, orange line, your iPhone is on Silent mode as the switch is pulled away from the screen. To turn the ringer on, pull the switch towards the screen.
You will be prompted with a notification screen, which indicates that you turned the ringer on or off when the Ring/Silent switch is flipped.
Third method: Adjust the Volume.
You may not be able to hear your iPhone 7 ringing simply because the volume level is set to a lower level. This is likely the case if you are able to hear other sounds or notification alerts from your iPhone. The ringer volume can be set independently from the volume of the other sounds on your device. So it is possible that while the rest of the sounds your iPhone makes may be getting louder because you increase the volume level of your iPhone, the ringer volume may be stuck on the lowest level. Here’s how to adjust the Volume level on your iPhone 7:
- Tap Settings from the Home screen.
- Tap Sounds & Haptics.
- Drag the slider all the way to the right to turn your ringer Volume up.
Alternatively, you can use the Volume buttons located on the left side of your iPhone to increase the ringer volume level. Just make sure that the switch next to Change with Buttons is turned on or in green color.
Fourth method: Verify and make sure that Do Not Disturb is turned off.
Do Not Disturb is an iPhone feature that is used to filter or set restrictions to incoming calls. When enabled, all your incoming calls, notifications and alerts will be turned off or silenced. This feature can be turned on or off through your iPhone Settings menu, Control Center, and using Siri. Here’s how it works.
Using the Settings menu:
- Tap Settings from the Home screen.
- Tap Do Not Disturb.
- Tap the switch next to Manual.
If the switch is gray, it means that Do Not Disturb is disabled or turned off. If it’s green, tap the switch to disable the feature.
Using the Control Center:
- Swipe up from the bottom of the screen to launch the Control Center.
- Tap the Do Not Disturb icon that is represented by a crescent moon.
- If the moon icon appears black inside a gray circle, Do Not Disturb feature is off, otherwise on. Tap the icon to turn DND off, if necessary.
Using Siri:
- Press and hold the Home button to activate Siri app on your iPhone 7.
- Say “Turn off Do Not Disturb” to command your iPhone to disable the feature. Be sure to speak clearly for Siri to respond to your input command correctly.
In response, Siri will let you know that Do Not Disturb is turned off.
Aside from turning Do Not Disturb feature off, you can also set it to scheduled. If scheduled is enabled, you can set a schedule when to activate the feature on your device. You can still turn on Do Not Disturb but allow certain calls from some people to get through no matter what. To make this happen, tap the option to Allow Calls from then select the groups of contacts to allow.
Fifth method: Verify and make sure that the caller or contact number is not blocked.
If you only missed calls from specific phone numbers or if someone said they called you but you so no sign of their call on your iPhone, it is possible that you have blocked their number. To check for blocked listed phone numbers on your iPhone 7, follow these steps:
- Tap Settings from the Home screen.
- Tap Phone.
- Tap Call Blocking & Identification.
- You will then see the screen that contains all the phone numbers you have blocked.
- To unblock a number, tap Edit, then tap the red circle on the left side of the number, and tap Unblock to confirm action.
Sixth method: Check your ringtone.
The problem can also be isolated to a ringtone that is not working. Perhaps the ringtone you have selected or the custom ringtone assigned to contacts, gets corrupted and therefore caused your phone not to ring when someone calls. To address a possible ringtone issue, follow these steps:
- Tap Settings from the Home screen.
- Tap Sounds & Haptics.
- Tap Ringtone.
- Select a new different ringtone.
Also check if the person whose calls you are missing has an individual ringtone assigned. Here’s how:
- Tap Phone to launch the app.
- Tap Contacts.
- Locate the contact’s name and then tap on it.
- Tap Edit on the right corner.
- Check the Ringtone line.
- Try to assign a new ringtone to that contact.
If the problem is only specific to the unique ringtone, all other contacts with the same ringtone assigned to them will also be affected. Set a new ringtone for each and then see what happens.
Other suggestions
- Update to the latest version of iOS. Should the problem is triggered by some minor software bugs, it can usually be rectified by a soft reset or reboot on the iPhone. However, other bugs are too complex and tough enough to withstand a reboot and so the problem persists after doing so. In this case, you can take your chances in getting the problem fixed by an update. So try to check for available software updates on your device. If there is then you should implement the update. You can update to the latest version of iOS through your iPhone Settings menu or use iTunes on a computer. If you wish to proceed with iTunes, you need to secure a computer either Windows or Mac with the latest version of iTunes app installed. Once you have everything set, connect your iPhone 7 to the computer using the Lightning cable, wait for iTunes to recognize your device and once it does, follow the onscreen instructions to download and install the latest iOS version available for your iPhone 7.
Seek More Help
If you have tried every possible solution and applicable workaround but only to end up having the same problem or your iPhone 7 is still not ringing, then you should consider talking to the experts at this point. You may escalate the problem to your iPhone carrier or Apple Support for further assistance and recommendations. Otherwise, you can set an appointment at the Apple Genius bar and bring in your device for hardware assessment and possibly, repair.
Connect with us
If you need more help with the use of certain functions and features of the new Apple iPhone 7 smartphone, feel free to visit our Tutorial Page. There you can find a list of how-to contents, step-by-step tutorials, as well as answers to FAQs regarding iPhone 7. If you have other concerns or encountered some troubles while using the phone, you can reach us through this form. Just be sure to tell us more details of the problem or device issue(s) you may have and we will be more than happy to assist you further.