Widgets come in all shapes and sizes. They live on your desktop, MySpace, web pages, PDAs, phone etc. They are small applications that are surrounded by other components and other brands. So how do you balance your own brand and still allow your widget to “fit in” with the other ones? Take a look at the NBA widget.

The NBA has a prominent brand which they would like to protect but they also need their creative to compliment the environment in which it is to be displayed. It also needs to look “cool enough” to engage a user enough to include in their personal space.

I looked through many of the web’s top Gadgets and Widgets an found a few similarities amongst the most downloaded:

• Simple - (don’t try to tell me weather trends in the US, just tell me if it’s raining outside)
• 3D - Use shadow, highlight and perspective to make your widgets “pop”
• Use logos and colors to maintain your branding but keep the saturation level low so you don’t conflict/compete with other environments.
• That “We 2.0″ look -Glossy surfaces, large fonts, gradients, textures etc.