September 2, 2025, 11:32 am | Read time: 3 minutes
Who hasn’t experienced this? Your phone is in your pocket, it rings–and by the time you’ve fished it out, the call is already gone. Frustrating, especially if it was an important call. But few know there’s a simple trick to adjust the ring duration without navigating through complicated menus. The best part: It works on both Android smartphones and iPhones.
The interfaces of Android smartphones and iPhones are completely different–knowing a setting on one operating system doesn’t necessarily mean you know how to adjust the same function on the other. But there’s an exception: network codes for mobile networks. These are identical on iOS and Android devices. A particularly useful function of these codes is setting the ring duration for phone calls. Providers typically preset this to 15 seconds. This is the golden mean of the adjustable range, which can be set in five-second increments from 5 to 30 seconds.
The Most Important Network Codes in Germany
If you prefer a longer ring duration–because it gives you enough time to dig your smartphone out of your pocket–you can easily increase this time. To change the ring duration, you just need to know your network provider and its code (voicemail code). For Telefónica/O2, it’s 333, Deutsche Telekom uses 3311, and Vodafone is 5500.
The network code for 1&1 is not publicly documented. However, based on the current network operations at 1&1, a practical solution can be derived: 1&1 currently primarily uses the Vodafone network (D2), particularly through so-called national roaming. Therefore, when in doubt, you should use the same code as in the Vodafone network to set the ring duration.
How to Change Your Phone’s Ring Duration
If you want to adjust the ring duration on your phone, you can do so in the phone app using the network code command **61*NetworkCode**Seconds#. The ring duration can be adjusted in five-second increments. Options include 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, or 30 seconds. Choose the time wisely–too short, and you might not reach the phone in time. Too long, and the ringing can quickly become annoying.
Here’s an example for a phone on the Vodafone network: If you want to set the ring duration on a smartphone in this network to 25 seconds, enter the code **61*5500**25#. Enter the code in the phone app on both Android and iOS–the same place you would normally make calls.
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Simply open the app and enter the respective network code for your provider. Then, just tap the green phone icon as if you were making a call. The network will confirm the change with a message. Adjusting the ring duration on your smartphone is free and can be repeated as often as you like.