Mosquito ringtone at 17 kHz: the tone only young people hear
A 17 kHz sine tone is audible to most people under 25 and inaudible to most over 30, thanks to age-related high-frequency hearing loss. Use wired headphones - cheap speakers often can't play 17 kHz cleanly.
The mosquito ringtone is a 17 kHz sine tone nicknamed for the Mosquito anti-loitering device, which used a similar high frequency to disperse teenagers without bothering adults. It works because high-frequency hearing drops with age - a 17 kHz tone is audible to most people under 25 and inaudible to most people over 30. That made it useful as a stealth phone ringtone in classrooms and as a viral demonstration of presbycusis.
By TechCompare · Updated
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How this is calculated
The 17 kHz ringtone isn't magic - it's just presbycusis in action. Hair cells in the cochlea that respond to high frequencies degrade first as you age, so by your mid twenties most people have lost some sensitivity above 15 kHz. A 17 kHz tone sits right in that loss band. The cutoff varies by individual, by exposure history, and unfortunately by playback hardware too - most laptop built-in speakers can't produce 17 kHz cleanly, and phone speakers vary. For an honest test, use wired headphones rated to 20 kHz. The 'young ears' meme is partly real biology and partly hardware luck.
Verdict
The mosquito ringtone is a fun demonstration of presbycusis, not a clinical test. Use it with wired headphones to actually probe your high-frequency hearing, and don't be surprised if a teenager in the room can hear what you can't - that's the whole point.
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Frequently asked questions
What Hz is the mosquito ringtone?
Why can kids hear the mosquito tone but adults can't?
Why can't I hear it on my laptop speakers?
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