Google has just released information about its latest addition to Maps which will begin rolling out in select cities later this year. It’s called Immersive View and it takes ‘Street View’ to a whole new level. When it becomes available in your area, you’ll be able to experience what a restaurant, a venue or a neighborhood is like – just by clicking on it.
Immersive View works by using billions of photos to model buildings and trees in 3D – using machine learning. If you’re planning a trip and you’re curious about a city or a neighborhood, you’ll be able to use this feature of Maps and you’ll be able to see it as if you’re already there.
If you’re visiting a city which has the Immersive View feature, you’ll be able to see what it looks like at different times of the day and in various weather conditions. You’ll also be able to check out where it’s busy and where it’s not.
One of the best features is the fact you can literally check out the inside of restaurants so you can see what sort of ambience they have. Sounds like it’ll be similar to the metaverse in a lot of ways!
Google has stated that Immersive view will be available when it’s launched later this year – initially in Los Angeles, London, New York, San Francisco and Tokyo. At first, it’ll only be available in the cities just mentioned but it will be coming to more cities later.
Previously, when a new Google Maps feature has been released, iPhone users are the last to see it. But Google has said Immersive view will work on just about any phone and device – so no problems there.
Other updates coming to Google Maps
There are some other updates coming to Google Maps and these include eco-friendly routing and Live View. Eco-friendly routing allows you to choose the route which is the most fuel-efficient so you can save money on petrol.
Live View uses AR to display arrows and directions on your screen as you walk around town. Google has also made this technology available to developers for free with the new ARCore Geospatial API.
More about Google Maps: Google Maps is a web mapping platform originally launched in 2005 by Google. It offers satellite imagery, aerial photography, street maps, 360° interactive panoramic views of streets, real-time traffic conditions, and route planning for traveling by foot, car, bike, air and public transportation.
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