a very controversial change is confirmed

Google is going through tough times; This is the second year in a row that the tech giant has announced massive layoffs and restructuring across its departments, and it’s already affecting its apps and services. We are already beginning to see the consequences of these decisions; Google Assistant started the year losing many functions, including some very basic ones like creating alarms that play music or accessing the recipe book.

Many users who use the assistant in specific situations have been affected, including those who do not use Google Assistant, but rather another application from the company: Google Maps. And on the list there is also a change that is difficult to defend: removing Google Maps app menu

one of the most useful features for drivers who use the app to get turn-by-turn directions during the ride.

When you activate Google Maps driving mode (by clicking “Start” when choosing a destination), the screen changes and shows the map in another perspective, with indications at the top of the next change of direction. direction that must be taken. At the bottom we have a black bar with two buttons; this area is called “Google Assistant Driving Mode”. The left but ton allows you to activate Google Assistant, which will listen to our commands and execute them; The right button, however, opens an application menu in Google Maps.

This menu includes direct access to applications that may be useful during the trip; For example, to the Spotify application to listen to the music we want during the trip, or to the Play Books application to listen to an audio book. At the top, we also have access to basic mobile functions like calls and messages. So this is a very interesting section for any driver, but if you are just discovering it, we regret to inform you that you will not be able to use it for a very long time.

And, in response to the rumors, Google has officially confirmed that will remove the menu from the Google Maps application from February 7

; although some users may be able to continue using it for longer until the update arrives. Google has tried to defend this change, rejecting that the driving mode “is dead”, as many publications have claimed; but in practice this will be the case, because without the applications menu there will only be the button to call the Google Assistant. And as we said before, this wizard probably doesn’t have long to live.

This change happens because, technically, this app menu was part of Google Assistant, not Google Maps; but the user cares little about these technical details, and only cares about them now you will lose one of the most useful functions that I had on my cell phone. It seems that Google has tripped over itself and the main victims are the users.

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