Muffling phone vibration at work

Question

I have my cell phone set to vibrate at work. I keep it on my desk, in my peripheral vision so I can either see the screen light up, or hear/feel a weak vibration in case I'm staring too hard into my monitor and don't notice the screen.

My last phone was great. The vibration was nice and soft. Noticeable by me 95% of the time, and unlikely to go beyond my cubicle. If I did happen to miss the vibrate, it had a neat LED that kept blinking. I had the phone on a small notepad which helped dampen the vibration noise across the desk.

On my new phone (Samsung Galaxy J7), the vibrate is loud, even in a case and on the notepad (which helps, but negligibly. A small paperback book has proven a little better, but I don't think much more will help). I'm pretty sure it's able to be heard over my cubicle walls, using the same method as with my previous phone. Unfortunately, this new phone does not have a notification LED so I've resorted to an app to turn the screen on when I get a notification. However, I may still miss this when concentrating on work as it only stays on for ~5-10sec. So a soft vibrate is even more desirable in case I don't notice the screen display and there is no LED to continuously remind me.

I do not want to keep my phone in my pocket as I obviously cannot see the screen, cannot always feel it vibrate, and it's a hassle to bring it in and out every time I just need to check something or respond to a text. Is there a way to muffle my phone, yet keep it on the surface of my desk around me?

Answer 1

Perhaps you could try a square of felt or rubber underneath your phone. A thick piece of felt would be my top choice, as it's used for sound dampening frequently. It should still emit enough of a buzz that you would feel it, but it wouldn't disturb your office mates.

If you don't care about how it looks on your desk, you could always try a folded up washcloth, or a microfiber rag. Btw, you can find any of those items at a local hardware store, I just included the home depot links as examples. Hope this helps!

Answer 2

The Samsung Galaxy models can change the intensity of the vibration through the settings menu. I don't have your specific phone, but it should be located somewhere in Settings. According to this forum on Android Central, you can change vibration intensity by:

1. Swiping down from the top of the screen, revealing the notification shade.
2. Tapping on the settings button in the top right corner.
3. Tapping on the Sounds and Vibration Button.

(Image from androidcentral.com)

4. Swiping down to reveal the notification shade.
5. Tap on settings -> sounds and vibration.
6. Tap on vibration intensity.

From this screen you can adjust vibration in three categories: Incoming call, Notifications, and Vibration Feedback (when you tap on the screen). Move a corresponding slider left to decrease vibration intensity or right to increase it.

Answer 3

Suggestion: turn off vibration entirely, then lower the volume to inaudible or the lowest volume setting. Your screen will still flash or light up, but no sound will be made.

Samsung J7 Vibrate Mode:

1. From a Home screen, swipe up then tap Settings Settings icon.
2. Tap Sounds and vibration.
3. Tap Sound mode.
4. Tap Vibrate.

This works on many phones, not just the Galaxy J7 (it works on my iPhone X, using the switch).