The new maps of Google Maps come to Android
The company Google already surprised us with its new generation of maps last May during their developer conference known as Google I/O Now, finally, Google Maps comes to mobile devices so you can enjoy these new maps anytime, anywhere and, of course, be able to consult any address, route or search for places of interest All this through a redesigned environment to be much more fast, useful and attractive Something which they seem to have achieved with this version.
The new version of Google Maps comes to Android through one update for both smartphones and tablets And the people at Google have thought of everything, creating a design specially adapted to big screens to make it even more convenient. However, as usual with the releases of this company, the update will arrive progressively to different parts of the planet, so it is possible that there will still be to wait a few days.
This new version brings with it the maps seen during Google I/O last May. A redesign to ensure readability of all on-screen components comfortably, varying the colors and lines a bit to make everything clearer and simpler, the mark of Google in short.However, not only the maps have changed. The full structure of the application is different, modifying menus, buttons and functions, as well as adding some new ones.
In this way, and as usual in Google tools, there is now a drop-down menu on the left of the screen accessed from the button in the upper left corner. It contains the different layers available to consult the satellite view, thetraffic density or even cycling routes that exist in an area. But what about all the options in search and places?
This aspect is perhaps the most surprising and useful aspect provided by the new version of Google MapsAnd it is that, from the map of the initial screen and by means of a simplesimple but very powerful search bar it is possible to carry out all the actions that were previously displayed in a bar tools bottom. In this way, it is enough to click on said bar and write the street or point to which you want to access to see it on the map But, if what you really want is to know how to get there, instead of carrying out the search you have to click on the icon on the right side that refers to the directions This displays a new window to be able to perform a specific search for the path , either by vehicle private, public transportation or by pie, being able to also use addresses already searched for in the history In addition, now they are also displayed incidents in real time on the road you are driving on.
Also surprising is the Explore function, which corresponds to the new design of Places Now, approaching what is seen on the social network Foursquare, it shows a selection of establishments as places to stay , restaurants, entertainment, etc. divided by needs that the user may have. All this with a new, more attractive design reminiscent of the information cards of Google Now, with a minimalist look that goes particularly well with the latest versions of the operating system Android
In short, a most complete redesign and, above all, useful And now a simple couple of screen touches can display all the desired information on the screen.The negative point is that this new version of Google Maps will only be available, at least Initially, for terminals updated to Android 4.0.3 or a higher version of this operating system. It will be possible to fully download free when the update is activated in Spain throughGoogle Play
