Google has faced several antitrust lawsuits over the past few years over the dominance of Google Search, ads, and its control over the Android platform. Now, it appears that Google Maps is an upcoming target of antitrust action in the United States.
Expand Expanding Close
There’s nothing worse than trying to find your way when suddenly you run out of signal and can’t view your map. Fortunately, Google Maps has a feature for downloading maps for offline use. Here’s how to use it.
Expand Expanding Close
Google Maps is partially down this morning with the outage particularly impacting its website and APIs for third-party applications that use Google’s location services.
Expand Expanding Close
Amid the ongoing invasion of Ukraine by Russia, Google has almost entirely disabled the country’s live traffic data from being visible in Google Maps.
Expand Expanding Close
Since 2010, Google has published Transparency Reports to demonstrate “how the policies and actions of governments and corporations affect privacy, security, and access to information online.” One such report shows the impact the war in Ukraine is having on how people use Google products, including Maps.
Expand Expanding Close
Google Maps is testing a new “Dock to bottom” feature on desktop that appears to work like a favorites bar for your most visited locations.
Expand Expanding Close
There are a slew of apps available with which you can share your location with friends and family. Although they generally work as intended, some of them prompt privacy concerns. Here’s how you can share your location using Google Maps instead.
Expand Expanding Close
Over the past year, Google listings have gained more attributes and details to better let potential customers learn about a place before visiting. Google Maps, as well as Search, is now letting healthcare providers identify which insurance they accept.
Expand Expanding Close
Due to the pandemic, travel has been slow this past year, and you might be a little rusty when it comes to picking up and traveling somewhere to visit friends and family or just planning a getaway. Whatever the case, Google has a few helpful tools in Google Maps and Google’s travel site to help you get started on making those plans and staying safe along the way.
Expand Expanding Close
With a new initiative, Google is working to “expand the information about food banks and pantries in Google Search and Maps” heading into the holidays and as challenges are “compounded by the COVID-19 crisis.”
Expand Expanding Close
Available starting today, Google Maps is rolling out support for grocery pickup to over 2,000 stores across 30 US states.
Expand Expanding Close
Recent Material You rollouts have primarily focused on introducing new widgets, like Drive’s Suggested files, or updated widgets, like shapes for Photos. That said, some apps have yet to be redesigned, but Google Maps now has a Material You bottom bar.
Expand Expanding Close
Undoubtedly the gold standard in the navigation and cemented in the No. 1 position on the mapping charts, Google Maps has now reached the 10 billion download milestone on the Play Store.
Expand Expanding Close
With Android 12, the “Android Auto for Phone Screens” experience is going away in favor of Google Assistant. That transition is happening for more users as of late, while Assistant Driving Mode can now auto-launch when it connects to your vehicle’s Bluetooth.
Expand Expanding Close
As part of Sustainable with Google 2021, the company today announced a slew of features across its products that let you make “more sustainable choices.” In Google Maps, this involves launching eco-friendly routing in the US and encouraging bike use with “Lite Navigation.”
Expand Expanding Close
The latest addition to Google’s rapidly growing catalog of Android homescreen widgets is a handy search widget for Google Maps.
Expand Expanding Close
Google introduced Plus Codes back in 2018 as an open-source version of typical street addresses, and now the company is ramping up that effort to make it useful to local communities that lack that structure. This will come in the form of a new app, “Address Maker,” which Google will make available for free.
Expand Expanding Close
During its “Search On” event this afternoon, Google announced new changes and updates in an effort to better track climate change. Google Maps is adding a new “Fire” layer to its apps as Google’s “Tree Canopy” tool is set for expansion.
Expand Expanding Close
Android Auto and the various available apps are built with safety and quick interactions in mind. This involves putting controls close to the driver, but that’s not always the case in some parts of the world. To help remedy that, Google Maps in Android Auto can now adapt its UI for right-hand-drive vehicles.
Expand Expanding Close
Whether in a new area or just finding the best way to get from point A to point B, Google Maps navigation can be a very valuable tool. However, some users have recently noticed a weird Google Maps bug that randomly changes the voice used for navigation directions.
Expand Expanding Close
The biggest update to Wear OS in years is out now, albeit with a heavy skin on Samsung’s new hardware. Still, it brings with it some app revamps, including a brand new Google Maps app for Wear OS. Here’s how the updated app works.
Expand Expanding Close
Google Maps users on Android and iOS today are seeing a new prompt that explicitly permits the app to crowdsource their “navigation data.” Notably, live turn-by-turn navigation will not work unless you agree.
Expand Expanding Close
The future is much brighter for Wear OS thanks to revamped software and much better hardware, but current watches are left in a weird state of limbo. Today, Google has revealed that its new apps for YouTube Music and Google Maps on Wear OS are coming out very soon, but they won’t come to older models.
Expand Expanding Close
Google officially announced the Maps for Android dark mode in February and widely rolled it out a month later. The Google Maps dark theme is now officially set to arrive on iPhone and iPad in the coming weeks.
Expand Expanding Close