Google Maps Rolling Out These New Navigation Features This Week

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Google Maps is rolling out several new features to iOS and Android users this week, focusing on improved navigation and travel planning tools.

google maps add stops
A new prominent "Add stops" button is being added alongside the Start button with the idea of simplifying route planning: It displays restaurants, gas stations, and points of interest along the way. This week's update also introduces weather disruption reporting, allowing drivers to mark and avoid hazards such as unplowed roads, flooding, or low visibility conditions.

In addition, arrival assistance is getting enhanced. Google Maps will now highlight nearby parking lots and prompt users to save their parking location. The app can then provide walking directions to the final destination using AR Live View navigation.

A more substantial navigation update is scheduled for next month, launching in over 30 metropolitan areas. This enhancement will provide clearer visualization of lanes, crosswalks, and road signs, with a blue line indicating the correct lane position during turns and merges.

google maps weather report 1
Looking further ahead, Google has announced plans to integrate its Gemini AI technology into Maps in the coming months. This feature will allow users to ask natural language questions about locations and receive curated recommendations based on data from over 250 million places worldwide. The AI implementation will also provide summarized reviews and detailed answers about specific venues.

Tag: Google Maps

Top Rated Comments

icanhazmac Avatar
icanhazmac
14 months ago
Here's a feature suggestion: Don't sell my location data to the entire planet.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ch1ptune Avatar
ch1ptune
14 months ago
Yikes. That UI is horrible. What a strange colour palette.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Schtibbie Avatar
Schtibbie
14 months ago
The first company that puts out a maps app that allows you to select avoids like "no unprotected left turns across giant roads at a stopsign with no light", and "no turning left out of a parking lot across giant roads" (which really is a subset of the first), will win my vote. I swear to god Apple Maps is constantly thinking that holding up an entire parking lot full of traffic so that *I* can turn left is somehow a good idea.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
orev Avatar
orev
14 months ago

Even though these are good features, Google Maps is nothing more than my fail safe in case I can't find something on Apple Maps.
Which means Google Maps is the better product, if that's the one you go to when you need things to work correctly? Apple Maps has definitely gotten better, but this isn't really a good argument for it.



Here's a feature suggestion: Don't sell my location data to the entire planet.

In order to keep a minimum of privacy I cannot recommend Google Maps at all.
Your location data is pretty expensive compared to your what's app conversations...

The data economy is growing fast with AI.
Apps don't need to be Maps apps to be collecting and selling your location. All apps that display ads are collecting it through their ad servers. At least with a Maps app you're getting some value for yourself as well, instead of the company getting all the value.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
benroberts3 Avatar
benroberts3
14 months ago
Apple is too restrictive with app capabilities in CarPlay. If Google Maps can’t include additional features in CarPlay, it feels almost pointless. Many people now connect their phones to their cars instead of using them as standalone navigation devices, especially with the prevalence of CarPlay.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
CarlJ Avatar
CarlJ
14 months ago

GM isn’t 100% for me. Local driving it doesn’t matter, but in unfamiliar territory I always cross check the navigation against a different source. YMMV.
Google Maps once told me to use any lane of the 6-lanes-each-way freeway I was currently on, to make an immediate U-turn.

Apple Maps was rushed out the door because (IIRC) Google wanted access to creepy amounts of information about people using the Maps app, when the contract came up for renegotiation. Since then, it has improved by several orders of magnitude. I think a lot of the people claiming that Apple Maps is bad and Google Maps is great... haven't really tried using Apple Maps in a very long time.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
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