Google Maps and Android Auto have recently received improvements that may be of great interest to you if you use them frequently. These two Google services are very practical for road trips, walking, or other modes of transportation, and now they’ve been significantly improved with the new features that are about to arrive for everyone.
We’ll tell you what’s new in both Google services and what could be very useful when you travel. If you haven’t received these improvements yet, don’t worry; both are on the way and may take a few days or weeks to reach all users. It’s also possible that some won’t arrive, and we’ll tell you why.
Better route planning in Google Maps with arrival time
Google Maps for Android significantly improves route planning to offer you more and better information for your trips. Now, when planning your routes by public transit or on foot, more details are displayed at a glance with a new structure that gives you a better overview of information.
If you’re traveling by car, the travel time is displayed in bold green on the left. On the right, in bold, you can see the distance and arrival time. You can also see other details such as costs, savings, traffic, and more. The last line includes the distance along with other trip information. It includes more information and changes the view to make it more precise. It even lets you find the fastest route despite traffic.
Improved route planning for pedestrians is also available, with a new display that shows key information such as the presence of obstacles, such as stairs, along the route.
For now, the Google Maps updates are rolling out to early users, so it’ll be a while before they’re fully available to everyone. It arrives with version 25.13.06 of Google Maps for Android, but it hasn’t been released on iOS yet. If you have an update available on your phone, download it to receive all the updates on your device as soon as possible.
Google makes a surprise appearance in Android Auto
Android Auto, the app that lets you enjoy many services while driving safely, has received the Google app without prior notice. At the moment, we don’t know what purpose or practical use this new app will have on the road. Android Auto 14.1, which began rolling out in beta last week, boasts many new features, and it seems the appearance of the Google app has caught many by surprise. Some even think it could be a bug.
It’s found alongside other apps and appears to function as a messaging app. When you open it, there’s a warning indicating there are no new messages during the trip. At the moment, it’s unknown if this is a bug or what’s behind the new app that has started appearing in Android Auto for some users. No further details are known, not even by analyzing the source code, so we’ll have to wait for Google to say more about this or if there’s something new we don’t yet know about. Or perhaps, just as it appeared, it will mysteriously disappear without warning.
