Google Maps app for iOS brings three new useful features

According to foreign media reports, Google Maps announced three feature updates for its iOS app today. Among them, the iMessage app provides real-time location sharing, a traffic widget for the home screen and dark mode, and Google Maps positions itself as a stronger competitor to iOS native Apple Maps.

Google Maps already lets you share your location in real time -- just tap the blue dot showing your current location to share how long it will take you to get to your destination -- and even your phone's battery life -- with selected friends. The Google Maps iMessage widget makes it easier to share your location without leaving your conversation. By default, Google Maps will share your location for one hour, but you can extend that to three days -- and if you want to stop sharing, tap the "Stop" button on the thumbnail.

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Google Maps' existing iMessage widget allows users to send GPS coordinates of their location in iMessage, but this may not be as useful as sharing a live location if you want to meet up with a friend. Apple Maps already has a similar feature, so Google is trying to compete with Apple. For a long time, Google Maps was widely regarded as the superior navigation app, but in 2018, Apple completely rebuilt Maps from scratch to make itself more competitive. In addition, with the launch of iOS 15, Apple Maps will add AR features, better public transportation features, more detailed maps, and other improvements.

Google Maps added Waze-like traffic and incident reporting features to its app in 2019, making it more attractive for people who drive to get off work. The app says one of its most powerful features is being able to see real-time traffic conditions in an area. Now, users of the latest Google Maps app can add a traffic widget to their home screen that can quickly share traffic conditions in their area. The widget also allows users to set frequently visited places such as home, work or gas stations, and they can navigate to these places with just one tap. While the app already has a dark mode on Android, this feature will also be rolled out to iOS users in the coming weeks.