Block Notifications: How does it work?

[SpookDroid]

Hello guys,

Weird question that I just can't seem to find (easily) out there. I know you can block notifications for each app in Android by toggling the appropriate switch. BUT what I'd like to know is how this 'block' works. Here are the two ways I think it could be working, but I'd like to know which one is the actual way it does it (or if I'm way off on how it is).

1) Apps with blocked notifications will not receive notifications at all in the background (thus, no data used) and therefore, no notifications will be displayed in the system. This would be the ideal case, me thinks.

2) Apps with blocked notifications are still receiving them in the background (data used), but the system simply chooses to ignore them and doesn't display them as notifications. This would be less ideal since you're still using data and the app is still doing things in the background.

Why do I ask this? Apps that have non-synced notifications. I just loooove checking notifications from Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, and Twitter all day in my phone only to come home and be bombarded with the same ton of notifications I already dismissed. I'm not sure why Messenger sometimes does sync them, sometimes (most of the time) it doesn't. So, I'd like to restrict notifications for those apps and save a little battery in the process, but I'd like to know if I would actually be saving in battery because they won't be using data and not receiving anything in the background or I won't be getting any benefits because the system just isn't displaying them.

 

[Rukbat]

1. Push notifications are sent - the app can't "block" that. (It may be possible, some day, for the phone to tell the server to stop sending certain notifications, but that might take a lot of data. Imagine a list of email addresses or phone numbers whitelisted every time you blocked something.)

2. Most likely.

Since it's impossible to block push notifications, #2 is the only way notifications can be blocked.

 

[SpookDroid]

I wish all apps respected the SYNC button. If I turn sync off, apps that are properly coded will effectively stop notifying me and using background data unless I open the app and manually request an update, but most apps don't 'listen' to the SYNC button state.

And since on my tablet for some reason these apps don't have the option to disable background data, it looks like I'm screwed.

Instagram will take notification toggles universally, so if I disable it in the tablet, they're also disabled in my phone. Facebook is the only one I can turn notifications off for completely, but Messenger doesn't have a permanent 'off' switch for notifications (just up to 24 hours mute), and what's worse, even if you block notifications for Messenger in Android, if you use chat heads you STILL get those as a notification since they pop up over anything.

 

[hallux]

Apps won't respect the Google account sync settings as those are for the Google account. Apps that can sync data usually have their own settings for that. There are also background data settings (in MM anyway) where you can restrict an app from using background data. Toggle that on (off by default) and the app shouldn't sync when it's not being told to.

 

[SpookDroid]

Yeah, don't know why some apps don't have that option on my tablet (disabling background data); that would be ideal, but it's not there for Facebook Messenger, the one that most annoys me. Oh well.

PS: The Sync button is not just for Google apps Some 3rd party, mostly e-mail, do use that to sync or not sync.