At its Google I/O conference back in May, Google showed off enhancements to its mapping services, announcing an all-new desktop experience as well as significant improvements to the company's mobile apps, including an iPad app.
Early today, Google announced that the revamped mobile map experience is now rolling out to Android smartphones, with the iOS updates "coming soon". Among the improvements included in the release:
Explore: Explore is a fast and easy way to visually browse and discover new places without even typing. Simply tap the search box and you’ll see cards showing great places to eat, drink, sleep and shop.
Enhanced navigation: In addition to current traffic conditions, we’ve added two new features to help you navigate around traffic. You can now see reports of problems on the road that you can tap to see incident details. While on the road, Google Maps will also alert you if a better route becomes available and reroute you to your destination faster. This feature is available only on Android and is coming soon to iOS.
Designed for tablets: A dedicated tablet design brings all the features of this new app to Android tablets and iPads, which makes exploring the world from the comfort of your living room much more fluid, smooth and fun.
The new mobile apps also incorporate Google reviews and Zagat ratings, as well as Google Offers from nearby businesses.
Apple of course replaced Google Maps as the default mapping service on its mobile devices as of iOS 6, rolling out an in-house app that has been the subject of significant criticism. Following Apple's move to an in-house mapping solution, Google launched a standalone Google Maps app for iPhone in the App Store last December.
