The new Google Maps update for iOS 7 has added some handy features. In-line route previews with traffic overlays, tips for beginners, a mini-map and added support for some languages.
Google Maps is pretty great, but it doesn’t always suggest the best route. Some roads suffer heavy traffic at different times in the day, others have less traffic lights and potential obstacles.
The new update allows the user to easily choose between multiple possible routes. To enable an informed decision, each route preview is backed up by user-sourced traffic conditions. Yellow is for medium, red is for heavy. This is something that high end dedicated GPS systems have been doing for a while now and it’s great to see it make the jump to Google Maps, providing it works well.
Switching between routes is done by swiping the tab at the bottom right or left. This will bring up the next suggested route and cause the highlighted route to change. Swiping this bottom tab upwards will give you the directions in list form.
A map within a map
Google has added a mini map to the directions menu, which is a useful little feature that you get once you’ve input your starting and ending locations. It shows you a small map of the suggested route, but does not include the alternatives.
Any other potential options are located below with approximate travel times, distance and are labelled with whatever main street they utilize.
A “Tips and Tricks” section has also been added to help out beginners. It’s not the most visually appealing menu that Google’s ever come up with, but it should make things easier for the uninitiated.
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