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A more detailed, colorful map
- zyang 6y agoLooks like a catchup feature to Apple Maps. Traffic signs must be next.
- jeffbee 6y agoWhat a weird thing to say. Did you compare any of the examples with Apple Maps? All of Iceland is flat gray in Apple Maps, as is Morocco.
- imnotrick 6y agoApple Maps rolled out a v2 version in the US that was way more colorful, and changes shades a green and yellow depending on the vegetation. Just because it isn't global doesn't make it a weird thing to say
- luhn 6y agoApple updated Maps earlier this year to include more visual details. AFAICT it's still US-only. https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2020/01/apple-delivers-a-new-redesigned-maps-for-all-users-in-the-united-states/ https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2020/01/apple-delivers-a-new-...
- kylebarron 6y agoMore like a catchup to Mapbox Streets [0] [0]: https://api.mapbox.com/styles/v1/mapbox/streets-v11.html?title=true&access_token=pk.eyJ1IjoibWFwYm94IiwiYSI6ImNpejY4M29iazA2Z2gycXA4N2pmbDZmangifQ.-g_vE53SD2WrJ6tFX7QHmA#6.39/64.884/-19 https://api.mapbox.com/styles/v1/mapbox/streets-v11.html?tit...
- jccalhoun 6y agoMaybe but I hope they do it better than apple maps. I think the colors on apple maps can be misleading. For example, I live near the end of a bypass so there is a decent amount of grass around the on and off ramp. In Apple maps that is a dark green. When I see green in a map I think of parks. In fact, looking at the whole town I live in, I see most of the area is a shade of green. I guess the light green is farm land? but some of that light green as splotches of a medium green in it which I have no idea what that might be. Trees?
- RickHull 6y agoThis feature doesn't seem live in my web browser. Iceland still looks like the old version.
- KineticLensman 6y agoNot actually rolled out yet... > This week, we’re rolling out new visual improvements
- petters 6y agoGoogle's releases are always so anticlimactic, since they are rolling out over a relatively long period of time. It is, of course, the correct way of doing things, but readers will be disappointed when they try it themselves. (I still have not gotten the noise-cancelling feature in Meet. Not sure what's up there)
- dakiol 6y agoI'm wondering when Google will start to show me based-location ads (with a, of course, "Skip" button) that interrupt me whenever I'm using their maps app
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- whoisjuan 6y agoI don't know if it's just me but Google Maps usability has declined a lot in the last two years. Before it was just so easy to look up something, set the route and go. Now it seems that there are a lot of unnecessary steps and information. Also there's a baffling bias toward showing directions instead of launching the live navigation view. They are trying so hard to make it look and work like Yelp that the overall "job to be done" of the application which is navigation has almost become a non first class citizen in the app. But even with all that, the thing that I hate the most about Google Maps these days is that somehow the "keep map up north" setting never stays off. I don't know what I'm doing but that setting gets enabled without me intervening. And that makes navigation in a car so hard and dangerous. I always have to open the settings in the middle of a trip to turn it off.
- OnlyOneCannolo 6y agoI actually like being shown the directions first. It's really helpful to have an overview and understanding of the route instead of just being spoon-fed surprise mystery directions at the last moment. Sometimes you need/want to deviate from your plans, and a little extra spacial awareness goes a long way.
- Spivak 6y agoAnd that's the point where you're supposed to tweak the route if you know better. I used maps to gauge traffic on my commute but there were times when I know they're wrong and haven't picked up on an accident yet.
- OnlyOneCannolo 6y agoTrue! Also helps you realize if you're heading to the wrong destination.
- Spivak 6y agoTo be fair I use Google Maps like I would Yelp to find local businesses so I think I'm part of the user-base that's ruining it for the rest of us. My workflow is something like searching "restaurants" panning around, looking at reviews, and then hitting the call button and it seems like they're catering to my use-case because it's monetizable.
- akersten 6y agoSo, are we losing the functionality to easily see what areas are parks (previously green) and what areas are not? Seems like a step back in usability.
- hammock 6y agoYeah, and does for example the white snowcap shown on Mt Rainier change with the seasons? How accurate is it at any given time, and if it's not accurate, what's the point?
- teachrdan 6y agoIn terms of usability, it's been said that Google Maps isn't about being a useful map application, but being a business directory with a map interface.
- basseq 6y agoThis was my reaction as well. It seems to be a fundamental shift from showing human boundaries (parks, etc.) to natural clime changes. Forget "more colorful"—that's a massive change in the intent of the data that seems to be glossed over. Personally, I care much more about knowing where parks and public spaces are vs. whether the surrounding land is "arid, icy, forested, [or] mountainous".
- symmitchry 6y agoAt the moment I am constantly surprised by how hard to read the maps are. I very often cannot see the roads because they are white no a white background (on my phone).
- mcphage 6y agoStill no traffic lights? "Turn right in 1.2 miles" will never be as easy to follow as "turn right at the third light" (or "turn right at the McDonalds").