14 DAY TRIAL // Both the swift hacking of, and the various improvements brought by the iPhone 1.1.2 update made most of the headlines. However, the update also did something else, namely re-enable custom ringtones.
Back with the 1.1.1 update, Apple locked custom ringtones out of the iPhone world. Now with the latest update they can come in and play again. While being good news for those who like their customs, it does raise the question of what exactly the company is doing. If they really wanted custom ringtones gone, why did they re-enable them now, and if the previous was unintentional, why on earth was it so deliberate and on so many levels? Opinions vary, as do the possible explanations, depending on whom you ask. Since Apple doesn't explain such moves in any way, it is next to impossible to know for sure, at least not until the next update. Apple can either relock custom ringtones or leave them as they are now, but in any case they will make their stance perfectly clear.
Interestingly enough, TUAW's Nik Fletcher has a very interesting theory on the ringtone change of heart. While in the US, iTunes customers may purchase ringtones alongside music, in Europe there is no such service at this point in time. As such, he proposes that Apple intentionally opened the hole again, making it look like an accident, so that European iPhone customers could have a chance to start using the feature, at least until an official service is worked out with the labels.
No doubt the company understands how important customization is to many customers, so it could be that Fletcher is right. If so, the upcoming updates will leave the hole open as long as there is no official ringtone store and only close it after one has been launched. In the meantime, users should make use of the feature while it is there.