Google Maps rolls out new widget: information on the traffic situation should improve navigation
Created: 06/21/2022, 15:50
By: Ines Baur
Check local traffic with just a tap.
Google Maps brings a new feature to Android.
© Armin Weigel/dpa
Google has announced an interesting innovation for its Google Maps service.
A widget on the start screen should make navigation easier.
Mountain View, USA - Every day, more than a billion kilometers are traveled using Google Maps in more than 220 countries and territories around the world.
Now, in the course of presenting new Android widgets, Google has also announced an innovation for its map service.
A widget is intended to make it even easier for users to use Google Maps.
Google Maps: Widget brings information about the traffic situation
Widgets are seen as a simple way of personalizing the start screen and thus placing individual information in the foreground of the screen.
For some, this can be the current local weather conditions, for others a to-do list or the latest news from their favorite newspaper.
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The new Google Maps widget shows the traffic in the immediate vicinity of the user directly on the home screen.
What's particularly practical is that you can tap widgets directly and carry out a desired action,
writes
chip.de.
It is also very easy to zoom in and out without opening the Maps app.
The new widget joins the existing ones as well as the shortcuts for route planning, location, share locations, general traffic conditions and driving mode.
One disadvantage is that the shortcuts take the user directly to the app when tapped.
Google Maps: New widget initially only for Android
"Whether you're commuting or meeting up with friends, Google Maps' real-time traffic forecasts will help you plan your route," the company said in a statement.
Thanks to the new widget, people can have the traffic situation in the immediate vicinity displayed directly on the start screen of their smartphone.
The new feature should be available for Android “in the coming weeks”.
Google in the sights of the Federal Cartel Office
There is not so good news for the group from another side.
Because the Federal Cartel Office is currently targeting the map service.
According to the authority, they are “following indications that Google is restricting the combination of its map services with map services from third parties”.
What is meant is, for example, the possibility of integrating a search function or street views from Google Street View into maps that do not come from the Internet group.
The Cartel Office will examine whether Google can "expand its position of power in certain map services" through practice.
