Understanding Quick Cards

When performing a search on the phone, the built-in Search app allows the user to view some results using a detailed view of the result, called a quick card. Quick cards are displayed using a Pivot control, and categories of information are grouped into pivot items. This information may include content such as photos, descriptions, ratings, reviews, and some item-specific data, such as price comparisons in the Product card or the duration of a movie in theaters in the Movie card.

In addition, the apps pivot item is a springboard for launching apps that have nominated themselves as applicable to the category of the search result.

Figure 31.1 shows the user path to launching an app from a search result listing. When the user enters Thai Food as search terms, a list of nearby restaurants is displayed in the local pivot item. Tapping a search result presents a quick card for that item. The quick card displays detailed information for the search result, which is presented in a pivot. When the user navigates to the apps pivot item, a list of apps is presented.

FIGURE 31.1 Launching an app from a search result’s quick card.

Although apps do not have to be installed on the device to be presented on a quick card, those that are installed appear at the top of the list.

The particular information that a quick card contains depends on the search that is performed. The following lists the four classes of quick cards:

Places

Products

Movies

Events

Places are locations listed in the local pivot page of search results. Products are listed under the products heading in the web pivot item of search results. Movies that are playing in theaters are listed under the Movies Near... heading in the web pivot item of search results, and Events are listed on the see+do pivot item of Local Scout.

The next section describes how to add your app to list of apps on a quick card.