Any way to clear red notification badges?

[luckycharms]

Hi Folks,

I have so many red notification badges on all my apps that they no longer mean anything. 77 on my mail, 24 in talkatone, etc. Is there any way to clear all these notification badges and let them all start from zero again? I'm up to date with everything - just want to know if there are any new notification from here on out...

thanks!

 

[Usernam]

If you're on iOS 5, you can turn off the app badge in notifications.

 

[Hawk]

Well, once you open an app with a red badge on it, it's supposed to go away, unless you need a little further action (like email, the number goes away when all are read).
The only other way to get rid of badges is to turn them off in settings under notifications.

 

[luckycharms]

sorry, should have posted my deets. iPhone 3g, iOS 4.2.1, jailbroken.

Thanks for the idea, but anyway, i'm not interested in turning them all off - just resetting them all to zero.

 

[Hawk]

If you're on iOS 5, you can turn off the app badge in notifications.

you can do that in any iOS version that has notifications in settings

 

[luckycharms]

Well, once you open an app with a red badge on it, it's supposed to go away, unless you need a little further action (like email, the number goes away when all are read).
The only other way to get rid of badges is to turn them off in settings under notifications.

Thanks Hawk. In almost all cases, my notification badges don't go away unless i attend every individual thing that's causing it (like in mail, as you mention). Sounds like i'm up the creek. A reset feature would be nice, as i'm sure i'm not the only one in this camp for whom badges have become meaningless...

 

[Hawk]

well, if they are meaningless, i don't see why you don't just turm them off. would ve easier for you, wouldn't it? but it sounds like you do use them, you just don't need things you're already aware of still notifying. that is a grey area that i don't think has any solution.

 

[luckycharms]

haha - i think you got me there. Perhaps I will turn them off for the especially annoying ones like Mail and facebook.

hmmm - i can't find any notification setting for Mail... Perhaps Apple doesn't allow notification config for built-in apps...

 

[Tinman]

you can do that in any iOS version that has notifications in settings

Actually in iOS 4.x you cannot turn off badges for Mail, Calendar, Messages, etc. And even if you turn off all notifications it will not remove badges already present. Moreover even for third-party apps while you can turn off badges it will not remove any that are already there. It's go-forward basis only. Old badges even survive a reboot.

Now in iOS 5 not only can you turn off badges for apps, including (most of) the built in apps, but once you turn off badges for an app any existing badges are removed at that time too.

So it is indeed much different in iOS 5. Alas it's a two steps forward, one back kind of a thing. In iOS 5 you don't get to turn notifications off globally--something I need to do often and quickly. That means that apps not in the "list" of notification apps can't be turned off (for badges). For instance badges for that pesky App Store app can't be turned off in notification center so I am forced to constantly be reminded of how many apps need updating.

Michael