San Francisco — In an attempt to capture another uncharted territory, worlds biggest search and advertising giant Google will begin offering navigation support for the South African version of Google Maps, has launched Google Maps Navigation (Beta) for smartphones running the Android 1.6 or newer platform.
Google Maps Navigation is an web-linked GPS navigation or ‘satnav’ system that furnishes turn-by-turn voice driving directions as a free feature of Google Maps was first announced in October 2009, but was initially only available in the United States. The service has gradually been rolling out globally.
Brett St Clair, head of mobile at Google South Africa, revealed the latest development during the launch event for the Sony Ericsson Arc and Neo phones, both of which will feature the navigation application.
Google Maps in use on a PC…
However, St. Clair noted that Navigation for Android is available on all devices operating Android 1.6 or newer. Also, there is no word yet on when it will come to other smartphone platforms.
Although Google Maps has been available in South Africa for a number of years, but until now the company’s complimentary, turn-by-turn voice navigation service was not provided in the region. One of the advantages of Google Maps Navigation over traditional GPS units is it integrates fully with mobile phones, so users can click an address in their contacts list, calendar or on a website and get immediate directions.
Navigation employs a phone’s internet connection to furnish users with the latest maps, which can be viewed at street-level or from above, as well as up-to-date business information. As a result, there is also no need to buy map upgrades or manually update devices as they will always utilize the most recent data from Google Maps.
Other blessings of Google Maps Navigation are the speed at which it can calculate alternative routes or reroute users should they make an incorrect turn or have to avoid unexpected road closures. With Google Maps, users are able to search for locations by voice or input of text and access directions for driving and walking.
In addition, Street View, which features a connected series of photographs imitating the experience of traveling down a road, is another star feature of the system.
“Users can visualize directions turn-by-turn, overlaid on Street View imagery, and Navigation automatically switches to Street View as a destination is approached,” St Clair said at the launch. South Africans can also now speak their destinations into their phones using voice search. The voice search functionality for SA includes support for searches in isiZulu and Afrikaans.
Moreover, travelers can also view their routes superimposed on 3D satellite views with Google’s aerial imagery. There is no need for users to know an address — they can simply type in a business name or even a kind of business just as they would on Google. They can also search for any kind of business as they travel on a specific route or turn on layers such as petrol stations, restaurants or parking.
Julie Taylor, head of communications and public affairs for Google SA, stated that navigation will indeed come to non-Android gadgets, but she can not promise to an exact time-frame.
Taylor also mentioned that the service offers a degree of offline functionality as well. “If you lose you connection, it is not a problem. Navigation will cache info for areas you are in often and for your current route, so even if it takes some time to reconnect you would not lose functionality.”
“Google Maps Navigation was developed from the ground up as an Internet-based GPS system, making certain features possible, such as being able to use Google Street View on your mobile,” said St Clair.
In terms of the public transport routes, traffic information and other overlays available for Google Maps Navigation in other regions, Concluding, Taylor said that Google hopes to provide this sort of functionality for SA users “in due course”.