Mountain View, California — In a novel display of innovation, search engine behemoth Google on Wednesday announced an update to the desktop version of its mapping platform that brings it in-line with the Android version: indoor maps are now a go. The latest release makes it a bit easier to plan that Black Friday shopping spree or holiday trip to an unfamiliar airport.
Almost for a year now, Google Maps feature has been available on Android, furnishing users with indoor maps, which cover airports, shopping malls, museums and 10,000 other popular hot locations, the company noted in a post on Google+. Now you can explore malls and airports from the comfort of your own web browser.
An indoor map of Atlanta’s airport. (Credit: Google)
Although the feature is pretty much informative, but indoor maps might not be as helpful on the desktop web browser than the mobile version, but if you plan on charting out your shopping route ahead of time or you think you may get lost in the airport while traveling over the holidays, the desktop web browser is a great place to plan your route and think ahead of time.
Interestingly, these lately announced indoor maps are currently available for select spots in Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Japan, Switzerland, Sweden, the UK, and the US.
Here is Google’s pitch:
“Before heading home for the holidays or out to shop on Black Friday, check out indoor maps of the airport or shopping mall on your desktop to better plan your trip. Simply zoom in on a building on Google Maps and you’ll automatically see a detailed floor plan with helpful labels for gates at the airport, stores within the mall, departments within a retail shop, as well as ATMs, restrooms and more.”
Indoor floor plans now available on Google Maps for your desktop — just in time for the holidays! goo.gl/LdTdn twitter.com/googlemaps/sta…
— Google Maps (@googlemaps) November 21, 2012
However, with the feature, armchair users can view floor plans for some airports, department stores, malls, etc. Unfortunately, indoor maps for the desktop comes with a bit of a catch. The desktop version of indoor maps is only offering the main floor plan of buildings currently, and there is no word yet on when the ability to view additional levels will be added. Android devices currently have the ability to view multiple levels of buildings.
“Depending on the data available, the map will show notable places in the building you are currently viewing, including stores, restrooms, food, and more,” Google says. “Click any indoor location to learn more.”
Another small catch is that indoor floor plans are confined to only about 10,000 floor plans in a number of different countries. So, if you reside in a smaller town, do not expect indoor maps to reach for your local shopping mall for a while — the feature is currently only available for buildings in bigger cities.
Eventually, the best part is that because Google has such a huge mapping community, you can expect the number of floor plans to keep ballooning. More locations will keep getting added; in fact, the company is urging venue owners to upload their floor plans.
You can also view a full list of which locations have been mapped over at Google’s Indoor Maps availability Web page.