Notifications
Notifications tell users about app events, such as a new email message or a meeting reminder. You can trigger a notification when a new event or new information is available that users might care about. The more important and time-critical the notification, the more intrusive it should be.
Use the following information to decide how best to notify users without overwhelming them or interrupting them too often.
Icon splat
The simplest and subtlest way to tell users about a new event is to add a splat to the application icon. This approach shows users that new information is available without interrupting them or forcing them to act.
Use for
New podcasts or game levels available to download
Don't use for
Alarms (too time-critical) or new posts in a social network (too frequent)
Message in the BlackBerry Hub
If your app sends messages (such as email or text messages), you can add new messages to the BlackBerry Hub. When a new message arrives, a splat is added to the icon.
Use for
Email, text, and Facebook messages
Don't use for
Reminders or new podcasts
Item in the notification list
If you want to tell users something important but your app doesn't send messages, you can add an item to the notification list. This gives users an entry point into the app. When items are no longer relevant, remove them from the list (for example, a low battery notification is removed when the BlackBerry device is connected to a charger).
Users can tap the item in the notifications list. If users get more than one notification from an app, they're grouped together. Once the notification is read, it should be deleted automatically from the list.
When a new item appears in the notification list, a splat is added to the app icon.
Use for
Travel updates and open Wi-Fi networks
Don't use for
Messages (should appear in the BlackBerry Hub) and Facebook comments or likes (too frequent)
Intrusive dialog box
If you have a critical event or the information is time-sensitive, you can display a dialog box. Use this approach judiciously since it interrupts users and forces them to act.
Use for
Incoming calls, alarms, and calendar reminders
Don't use for
Messages
Toasts
A toast is a simple, non-modal pop-up message that allows an application to give light-weight feedback. A basic toast can contain either text, an icon, or a combination of the two (for example, volume level display or progress feedback). Toasts are very short lived - they should appear on the screen closest to where an action was performed and disappear in just three seconds, giving the user enough time to read but not be annoyed by the message.
Special intrusive toasts reserved exclusively for undoing a delete command can also be used. This toast includes an Undo button.
Use for
Short, useful, one-line feedback messages that can be read in under three seconds.
Don't use for
Long messages that take more than three seconds to read. Intrusive toasts must only be used to undo deletions.
LED
The LED is an important BlackBerry notification. When it flashes, it tells users something has happened.
Use for
Adding messages to the BlackBerry Hub, adding items to the notification list, or displaying an intrusive dialog
Don't use for
Adding a splat to the app icon
