Android 16 is expected to introduce a new type of notifications called Rich Ongoing Notifications, allowing apps to display items similar to Apple’s Live Activities feature in the status bar. Continuing Android’s commitment to delivering effective notifications, this update aims to make notifications more informative and customizable, giving apps the ability to show more than just an icon. This feature was seen in the latest Android 15 QPR1 beta 3 and shows potential for interactive notifications.
Enriched permanent notifications
L’API Rich Ongoing Notifications (enriched permanent notifications) will allow apps to create banners with text and background colors, similar to the screen recording banner present in the latest Android betas. These elements can be clicked to provide more details, providing real-time updates on things like impending wake-ups or delivery arrivals like Uber. Although reminiscent of Apple’s Dynamic Island, this type of notification is not new in Android, which introduced a dynamic banner for calls with Android 12, a year before the launch of the iPhone 14 Pro.
The API is still under development and is currently not accessible to most Android apps. However, Google has provided a command line interface to explore the possibilities. Using this tool, developers were able to create mock notifications for apps like Google Clock, Uber, and United Airlines (an airline), demonstrating how this feature could enrich real-time notifications in Android 16. Although some may Seeing this feature as inspired by Apple, the concept takes what has been around in the Android ecosystem for a long time and is set to get more interesting with Android 16.
After a lackluster Android 15, we say that Google could make permanent enriched notifications an emblematic feature of the next Android 16.
But frankly, the rendering is far from being as pleasing to the eye as at Apple. At least as of today.
