# 3G Rogers - Adjusting the number of rings before voicemail kicks in



## hwitten (Jul 14, 2008)

Am I the only one that can't answer calls before they go to voicemail, I.e. within 2-3 rings?

Have done some searching and no complaints it seems. Have called Rogers to get the number of rings or time increased before a call goes to voicemail. CAN'T DO. They say any adjusting has to be done by Apple.

Funny, in the US AT&T is able to do it. Once again we get screwed?

Seriously though, is everyone fast enough to answer their phone in that short a time? or have you found a way to increase the time/number of rings before a call goes to voicemail?

At the moment my phone is not jailbroken, but if there are adjustments that can be made only if jailbroken, that would be enough reason for me to go that route.

TIA


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## adagio (Aug 23, 2002)

Excellent question. I'd like to know too.


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## HowEver (Jan 11, 2005)

Everybody probably asks this question at some point.

The number of rings before forwarding to voicemail cannot be changed.


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## a7mc (Dec 30, 2002)

Both my iPhones ring for a long time before going to voicemail. On "old phone" I get about 5 rings. Same for the caller... 4-5 rings before voicemail.


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## hwitten (Jul 14, 2008)

On a whim I power-cycled the phone again and I now have 15-20 seconds to answer, up from the 5-10. Better, but still not a happy camper. We'll see how long it lasts.

Did more Google'ing Seems that Roger's Voicemail is non-standard compared to other GSM Carriers. Even Fido can adjust the time (via codes entered in the phone), just not Rogers it seems.

Hopefully there is a resolve in the future.


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## Andrew Pratt (Feb 16, 2007)

> Even Fido can adjust the time (via codes entered in the phone)...


Is that something only Fido can do or are those codes public knowledge?


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## hwitten (Jul 14, 2008)

Right, only Fido is using the standard GSM voicemail scheme.

Rogers is not, so there is no way to adjust time to ring before going voicemail. Personally I thing that 20 seconds is too short, considering you usually have to get the phone out of a pocket or case. I'd like to see 25 or 30 second options.

The only way we'll get it on Rogers is to complain. SMS messages are probably being used up unnecessarily being a byproduct of their bad design. Of course maybe that's the underlying reason.

Re Fido, I have not tried it of course because I'm on Rogers but other posters have confirmed that the standard GSM code works. To find the codes just Google GSM codes.

There is a possible downside to the longer ring-time as it seems airtime charges start with the first ring, not when a call is answered. I'd still prefer a longer ring-time as it'll mean I'll get more calls answered initially instead of it going to voicemail just because I fumbled.


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## Andrew Pratt (Feb 16, 2007)

FYI I just found this and it worked fine on my Fido iPhone.


> Change iPhone forward to voice mail time
> By default, the iPhone will forward to voice mail after 20 seconds if you don't answer your phone. If you like, you can change this value in one of two ways. The first way is to call AT&T directly and sit on hold for a long time. Once you get a customer support rep, they can change this value for you. If you are feeling more adventurous, you can also change this value yourself through the following procedure:
> 
> 1) From the iPhone keypad, make a call to this number: *#61#
> ...


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## hwitten (Jul 14, 2008)

Thanks Andrew, that confirms that Fido is indeed "standard".

I'll have to investigate making the switch, if it's possible to do that without getting nailed with cancellation fee. Was close to going Fido at the beginning. Bummer.


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## gmark2000 (Jun 4, 2003)

This really sucks for Rogers customers.


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