Google Earth has been criticized majorly for its patchy, mosaic-like images of Earth’s surface, since it was released in 2005. This effect is basically a product of Google using various satellite images and photographs that were taken. These images were taken at not only different times, but on different days, some of them sunny, some of them rainy, and so on. However, the recent announcement from Google in a blog post noted that its new version, Google Earth 6.2, has changed the way it renders images, making maps appear more seamless.
Frederic Lardinois wrote on Silicon Filter that the smoother looking maps share a similarity to the Bing Maps, which are already available.
“The end result is a beautiful new Earth-viewing experience that preserves the unique textures of the world’s most defining geographic landscapes – without the quilt effect,” Google Earth product manager Peter Birch noted. He added, “Images of mountains, oceans, deserts, 3D cities, your favorite pizza shop on Street View – you can now experience all these amazing places around the world with people on Google+”.
It was noted in Google’s example, a user can “fly around” the 3D Colosseum in Rome, Italy while browsing photos, which pop up within the satellite imagery so users can interact with them without leaving the Colosseum and its surroundings.
Google+ linked with Google Earth gives users an ability to share images from Google Earth on their Google+ profiles. The usability of this feature requires one to sign in with their Google IDs. Once logged in, users can post Google Earth screen shots to their G+ profiles.
There is no Hangout feature yet on Google Earth, but Mashable’s Charlie White writes that this change “is further evidence of Google’s intention to integrate all of its products with Google+.”
Talking about the Android connection, the search engine giant has launched a new version of its Google Earth application, tailored for Android 3.0 “Honeycomb”. This is specifically designed for the larger tablet screens.
This free Android app, allows users to click on an icon to see photos and videos, or read about prominent places around the world. Users even have an option to choose to display other layers, such as the Weather Layer or the “Explore the Ocean” layer.
This upgrade is available for download from Google’s Android Market for Android 2.1 devices and later and all Honeycomb tablets.
An effort from Google might not go unnoticed, but existing users of Google Earth, using an Android device would be pleased. However, the possibility of addition of many new customers will be a rare possibility.