The Christmas season is approaching, and with it shopping and all that comes with it: the search for that gift you can’t find anywhere, rush hour traffic jams and long holiday trips. Now, Google Maps has been updated with a variety of features aimed at making it all more bearable.
It must be taken into account that some of these novelties have not yet been confirmed for Europe, and others have certain requirements such as specific car models; but over time they should be available to all users. They are in addition to the new features of Google Maps presented a few weeks ago, such as weather warningsand make the app the only one we need to plan our outings.
One of the most interesting new features comes from the product search integrated into Google Maps. For example, if we have a few free minutes and we want to take advantage of them to buy one of the gifts, we can search for “pull” and Google Maps will show us nearby stores to our location where we can purchase these clothes. In a carousel the products and the distance we have to travel to reach the store will be displayed, and simply by clicking on a product we will find information about the store and we can automatically start the route. It is even able to tell us if there are any pieces of clothing left that we want to leave behind, to save us a trip if it doesn’t fit.
But these are also days of traffic jams and delays, even if you go there on foot. Google Maps already receives weather warnings for users who are driving, including related events such as snowy roads or accidents; and now it will also let us know if the streets are so busy that we might experience delays.
Users themselves will be able to create these events traffic problemslike those related to the car. Likewise, transport agencies will be able to report delays on Google Maps, so that bus, metro or train users can take them into account when making their plans.
Free Android
If we prefer to go on vacation by electric car, a novelty that will interest us is the one that will help us plan the trip taking into account stops to recharge the battery. The function automatically will incorporate stops at charging points when we are going to create a new route long enough to need it; and this route will be sent to Google Maps on Android Auto or Android Automotive so that it notifies us of the stop when it hits it. And if we take a trailer to transport gifts or the Christmas tree, you can create a suitable route; although for the moment, it is only compatible with certain American truck models.
