Google Maps has possibly become one of the most important applications in our day to day, indispensable and very useful, since it is common to use it to consult how to get to certain addresses and locations that we do not know, especially when we travel to new places to U.S.
But recently the developer specialized in reverse engineering, Jane Manchun Wong, digging through the code of one of the latest versions released by Google of the application, has discovered some interesting news that, possibly, will come in the coming months.
Among these novelties we would find changes in the user interface . The objective is possibly to modernize the design and appearance of the application itself, in addition to improving some existing tools and functionalities, and adding new ones in order to continue to face competing platforms, such as Maps of Manzana.
Interesting changes in the app and user interface
One of the first changes recently discovered is related to the appearance of a search form with rounded corners , very similar to the one that in fact we can already find in a wide variety of Google apps, so the company would like to have the same design and appearance in all its official applications (so far this form has a rectangle-shaped design).
Within the Places section, we may also find some interesting changes regarding the user interface of this app itself. And, now, the cards related to each place could show some of the most common words that appear in the reviews , so that it would be much easier for the user to get an idea of what to expect from each of them.
This last option is very interesting, especially for those moments in which we do not have much time, and basically we do not want to review long texts with reviews written by other users. Thus, it will help us to make a first impression without having many minutes.
On the other hand, and on the occasion of the presentation of the new Google Maps logo on the occasion of the 15th anniversary, it is to be expected that the new creation will also be added, while, it seems, the user’s profile image will be integrated on the right from the screen.
It will allow connections with public transport
Wong herself has also spoken about the possibility of Google Maps launching new route options , which among other interesting aspects, would include connections with public transport .
This will also provide very useful advantages for the user, since it will be easier to combine different types of transport on the same route. And following Wong’s comments, we may see combinations such as bicycle and public transport or car and public transport (among other useful options).
Weather alerts (and air quality advisories)
It seems that Google Maps will also soon implement a very useful functionality for all of us who are concerned about air quality in the city where we live. And it is that it would include a new meteorological layer , which will inform us not only of how the weather will be both for the next few hours or days when we look for a specific place.
It will also inform us about the quality of the air, thus becoming a very suitable tool for those who constantly suffer from allergies or are asthmatics.
Although this new meteorological layer will be launched worldwide in the coming months, for the moment the information related to air quality will only be available in some countries such as India or the United States, before reaching the rest.
Access to greener routes
The coronavirus pandemic has considerably changed our way of life. Now more and more people telecommute from home. And there are also those who have preferred to leave the car at home whenever possible, to walk to work or move by bicycle.
Maps, in the coming months, will also implement a renewed visualization system of the different options to reach a certain destination , which would include, so to speak, much more ecological routes .
That is, in a single view it will include cycling or walking routes, as well as public transport or with our own vehicle. What’s more, in a very interesting bet, Maps will be able to choose by default the route that has the lowest carbon footprint .
