Google’s maps application is full of new features. It now displays immersive views in your routes, lets you search for locations with Lens, and offers a more detailed map.
Google is in the process of introducing several new features to Maps. The mapping application will indeed benefit from important new features made possible by the power of the Mountain View giant’s artificial intelligence. Google Maps will thus be able to display your routes in an immersive view and allow you to identify places around you using Google Lens. Don’t forget navigation mode will benefit from more detailed maps.
Maps also contain new information for electric vehicle owners, such as charging speed or socket compatibility with their car.
The itineraries offer immersive views
The importance of Google Maps in our daily lives is so great that Google provides its users with more than 20 billion kilometers of routes every day. But the routes as we know them today will continue to evolve. In fact, Google has expressed its intention to integrate immersive views for the routes searched in the application. This new feature, announced during Google I/O, allows you to visualize your journey with a view of the sky but with the scenery of the real world thanks to a photorealistic 3D image. You can also scroll the time cursor of your route to see a simulation of your journey in real-world conditions. The immersive view of Google Maps takes the time of day and weather conditions into account, for example to adjust the brightness of the immersive view or the traffic density.
Also Read: 25 Tips to Master Google Maps Like a Pro
Whether you’re traveling on foot, by bike or by car, you can plan your route in several major cities, including Paris, London, Barcelona, Amsterdam, Dublin or even Florence, on both iOS and Android View in an immersive view.
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Searching with Live View becomes Lens in Maps
For several months now, Google Maps has allowed you to search for places near you using Live View search in augmented reality. Undoubtedly, for the sake of simplicity, Google is abandoning this name in favor of Lens in Maps. The module, represented by the Google Lens icon in the map search box, allows you to view information about the places around you in augmented reality. Simply point your smartphone’s camera in the direction of your choice to view shops, public transport stops, restaurants, etc. The feature, already available in Paris, will be expanded to around fifty other major cities around the world, including Las Vegas, Rome and even Taipei.
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More detailed mapping during navigation
The Google Maps map displayed during navigation also changes. To better reflect the real world, Google plans to update the colors across the map and display more realistic buildings. The aim of the operation is to provide you with better orientation and orientation, especially in urban areas. But it should also be beneficial for navigating on main roads. On the highway, for example, the Google Maps map shows more detailed information so that you can better anticipate a lane change, for example at an exit. However, there are no immediate plans to implement these changes. Google says they will only arrive in a dozen countries, including France, in the coming months.
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In addition, information on speed limits will be expanded to around twenty additional countries on the European continent. Google explains that this information on speed limits will be fed directly by the AI, which will be responsible in particular for analyzing the images taken with Google Street View to read the signs.
New information for electric vehicles
Finally, Google has gone a step further to satisfy EV owners who use Maps. The application displays new information about the charging stations, such as socket compatibility or suggested charging speed.
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A priori, it will also be possible to display the date of last use of a terminal, information that can prove very useful for detecting out-of-service charging stations. These new features are rolling out to Google Maps on iOS and Android this week.