Written by Google have announced that they will be launching their new free software that will allow users to turn their Google Maps into fully fledged satnav software, with turn-by-turn instructions.
The news could come as a blow to satnav manufacturers who could see sales drop and thousands of Android customers use their phones as a satnav rather than investing in a sole satnav model.
The new service will run on Android 1.6 or above and can be found in the Google Maps app. The free service will offer regular map updates, street view and satellite view as well as estimate journey times and voice prompts to tell you when to turn. As well as this, the application will automatically switch to street view at the end of your journey to guide you to your exact location, which is something that many satnav’s do not feature.
The free service will also be at an advantage in being directly linked to Google search, so if you’re in need of a specific location, local business or the nearest petrol station then you can also search for these.
There’s always a downside of course; although you can pre-download the route you’re taking, the service will not pre-load the entire regional map, so it will still work best with a constant connection, which could lead to a massive drain on your phones battery.
It also only features routes for cars so cyclists and walkers are out of luck for now, but there should be an upgrade coming soon.
