Way back in 2005, Google announced Google Maps. In the beginning it was fairly basic. Its now available for most phones and has some good features. One major point is that it doesn’t need GPS to somewhat guess your location. Its very handy for finding locations, restaurants, etc with the phone numbers and addresses. However it always lacked Turn-By-Turn navigation. So, the program was always limited in its usefulness.
Google Maps Navigation for Android 2.0
They announced a couple of weeks ago, the release of Google Maps Navigation. The news was so big, it really, really hurt Garmin and Tom Tom. I mean really hurt. On the day of its announcement stocks were being dumped like old newspapers. Garmin dropped 21% and TomTom 40%. Shows how much people believe Google will make big changes in this industry. Here is a very real chart… provided by none other than Google Finance.
Garmin dropped 21% and TomTom 40%.
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Here is a run down on its features:
(The videos really do it justice)
- Search in plain English (watch video). No need to know the address. You can type a business name or even a kind of a business, just like you would on Google.
- Search by voice (watch video). Speak your destination instead of typing (English only): “Navigate to the de Young Museum in San Francisco”.
- Traffic view (watch video). An on-screen indicator glows green, yellow, or red based on the current traffic conditions along your route. A single touch toggles a traffic view which shows the traffic ahead of you.
- Search along route (watch video). Search for any kind of business along your route, or turn on popular layers such as gas stations, restaurants, or parking.
- Satellite view (watch video). View your route overlaid on 3D satellite views with Google’s high-resolution aerial imagery.
- Street View (watch video). Visualize turns overlaid on Google’s Street View imagery. Navigation automatically switches to Street View as you approach your destination.
- Car dock mode (watch video). For certain devices, placing your phone in a car dock activates a special mode that makes it easy to use your device at arm’s length.
This new software comes with everything you’d expect to find in a GPS navigation system, like 3D views, turn-by-turn voice guidance and automatic rerouting. But unlike most navigation systems, Google Maps Navigation was built from the ground up to take advantage of your phone’s Internet connection.You have to watch this video, even just to watch a geek on video:
As usual, its ready for the U.S now, but not for us just yet. But it gets you excited about Google Android, huh? To read more on Google Android click here – Google Android and The HTC Hero coming to Meteor
Click here to see lots more shots – Google Maps Navigation
UPDATE: HTC HERO UN-BOXING PICTURES HERE
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