How’s this for the ultimate trivia question:
If a phone number is disconnected, will it ring?
We’ll tell you right now.
No, a cell phone number that has been disconnected will not ring!
For the most part, anyway.
To elaborate: If a phone number is disconnected before the call, it will not ring at all. If the phone is connected before the call but disconnects during the phone call, it will immediately stop ringing.
There are various reasons as to why these disconnections can occur.
How Does A Phone Get Disconnected?
Phone number disconnections can happen in two ways.
One is through SIM disconnection, which invariably affects the phone in its entirety.
The other is by direct phone disconnection, such as Flight mode or through it being switched off.
Some of the scenarios in which phone disconnection occurs are as follows:
Disconnection From Servers Due To Poor Cellular Network Signal
A poor signal can be caused by a variety of factors, but one of the most common is severe weather conditions that are able to create disruptions in cellular connectivity.
Examples of such conditions may be typhoons, monsoons, or heavy storms, along with many other environmental impacts.
Less-developed regions and undulating terrains may experience weaker network strength, and some uninhabited locations may not be able to receive any signals at all.
Less catastrophically, the cause for poor cellular signals may also result from network provider issues such as maintenance time-outs.
Poor cellular network signals are the major contributor to random phone disconnections. This might mean that your call may ring once or twice- and then abruptly disconnect.
Alternatively, the connection may be sporadic; sometimes going through and sometimes not, even if you redial just moments after a successful call.
Interruptions like these are unintentional disconnections.
Phone On Flight Mode
Intentionally placing a phone on Airplane Mode automatically disconnects it from all wireless and mobile networks/servers. In this case, the phone will not ring at all!
Improper Insertion Of A SIM Card
If you insert a SIM card in an incorrect manner or use a faulty one, the phone won’t function properly.
This is because your phone will not be connected properly, and it will thus be unable to receive any calls.
Disconnected From Server
There are situations where servers directly disconnect SIM cards.
This could be due to incidents such as stolen or lost reports, inactivity after a long period, unpaid bills, or SIM transfers.
Even if placed in a phone, these cards will not provide a connection. As a result, a phone will not ring if it contains a disconnected card, and even correct placement or zero instances of damage to the SIM card will be irrelevant.
How Do You Know If Someone’s Phone Is Disconnected?
You can infer whether a person’s phone is disconnected in two primary ways.
Firstly, disconnection in the process of a call cuts or drops abruptly. While this can also be due to many potential factors, disconnection due to one of the listed reasons above is a likely cause.
If the phone is on Flight Mode or disconnects due to any other form of intentional disconnection, it also will not ring.
Instead, you will receive an automated voice or text message informing you that the server cannot complete your call with one of the following:
- “The number is not reachable”,
- “Out of service”,
- “Number is nonexistent”,
- and other similar responses.
If you are still unsure, you can try confirming if the user’s service has been terminated from the service provider (though they might be reluctant to part with those details).
If yes, then the phone won’t have a connection. If not, the phone might either be off, on Flight mode, or in areas with a weak signal.
Note that in cases of switched-off phones, the interceptive automated voice message may indicate that the phone is off and direct you to voicemail.
This isn’t 100% guaranteed to occur, however, especially if the voicemail feature of the recipient is off.
What Happens When A Phone Is Disconnected?
When a phone is disconnected, it simply means it’s cut off from any network provider.
In this state, a phone cannot make or accept calls via a cellular network.
The disconnection can either be temporary or permanent. Temporary disconnection implies that you can reconnect to your network server.
Permanent disconnection can be by choice, caused by an inability to reconnect after a disconnection, or as a result of server action on inactive phone lines.
How Can You Differentiate Between Blocking And Disconnection?
It is essential to know that phone disconnection is very different from call interception by the network provider, as is the case with a blocked number.
Although both might result in the phone ringing once or twice before being cut, you can still easily differentiate them.
Disconnected phones don’t ring, while blocked numbers will tend to ring a specific number of times before dropping.
This is because the call blocking feature is still a work in progress in most phone models. The calls still go through, and you still hear the sound of the first couple of rings before the interception.
You can also differentiate between blocked and disconnected numbers by the ensuing automated voice response.
The automated voice response for blocked calls is usually something along the lines of “the number you are calling is currently busy and unable to…”.
After the drop, your call may then be redirected to voicemail. On the other hand, disconnected numbers will often redirect you to a voicemail spoken in the person’s voice.
You can also try calling the phone with a different line. If it goes through, the contact most likely has your original number on their block list.
However, if the response is the same as with your previous attempts, you can pretty safely conclude that the phone has been permanently or temporarily disconnected.
Can You Make Your Phone Seem Disconnected?
Fortunately, making your phone seem disconnected is not rocket science. Here are some easy ways to do so:
- By turning on Flight mode – the easiest method of them all!
- Turning off SIM card function from your settings. This is mainly a feature of double sim phones.
- Removing/Displacing your sim. Depending on the phone brand, this might be challenging to do on a whim, but it is an excellent way to disconnect for any set period.
- And a personal favorite, if I may: Using a high network connection like 5G or 4G in an environment with only 2G or 3G functioning.
This method is not always feasible, but if it is possible it is also an excellent way to induce ‘unintentional’ disconnections from shaky/poor signals.
In Conclusion
In response to the question, “If a phone number is disconnected, will it ring?”
A disconnected phone will not ring.
If the phone was ringing before disconnecting, then it is likely that the phone had service but was disconnected during the ringing process.
Additionally, disconnected phones may give automated messages indicating that the number is unavailable, or that the call cannot be connected.
This situation may or may not be permanent, so it’s a good idea to redial after a while to check if a reconnection can be established. A final option is to contact the servers and carriers directly for confirmation (if available).
Best of luck!