I am working on a React Native app using Expo (managed workflow), and I need to implement an emergency alert feature.
The requirement is:
When a push notification is received, a sound should play for around 30 seconds, even if the app is in the background or killed.
Currently, I am using expo-notifications and a custom notification sound. However, I noticed that:
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The sound only plays for a few seconds (around 3–5 seconds)
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It does not continue for the full duration of the audio file
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Behavior varies across Android devices
What I want to know:
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Is it possible to play a notification sound for ~30 seconds on Android using Expo (managed workflow)?
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If not, what are the limitations imposed by Android or Expo?
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Are there any workarounds to achieve a longer or continuous alert sound (for emergency use cases)?
Additional context:
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App is built with Expo (managed, not ejected)
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Target platform: Android (primary), iOS optional
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Use case is similar to an emergency alert or alarm
Any guidance or recommended approach would be appreciated.
Accepted Answer
I don't think expo-notifications is able to sufficiently cover your use case because IIRC it uses the NotificationCompat API, which has the following limitation:
> Note: Beginning with Android 8.1 (API level 27), apps can't make a notification sound more than once per second. If your app posts multiple notifications in one second, they all appear as expected, but only the first notification per second makes a sound.
I'd rather look into using AlarmManager API for this. There is an expo package for it but I can't attest to it's quality. You might end up needing to write your own native bindings
Chris Witalewski