 A
few weeks ago, together with the launch of
Motorola's Droid (the first available
Android 2.0/Eclair smartphone),
Google launched
Google
Maps Navigation (Beta) as a free feature of
Google Maps
Mobile on Android 2.0
devices. And now, Google expands the availability of Google Maps Navigation to
(all) devices running
Android 1.6/Donut and higher, such as the T-Mobile
myTouch
3G and the G1, but
also with the HTC Hero
and Tattoo. Google Maps Navigation is an internet-connected off-board GPS
system with voice guidance and automatic rerouting, all running on your smartphone phone.
Using Google services over your phone's data connection brings important
benefits to GPS navigation users, like using Google search (typed or spoken) to
enter your destination; fresh map, business and traffic data; and satellite and
Street View imagery along your route.
 
This release also includes the new Layers feature, which lets you overlay
geographical information on the map. View My Maps, transit lines, Wikipedia
articles about places and more.
If you have a phone running Android 1.6, you can download an updated version
of Google Maps from Android Market to use Navigation today. Google Maps
Navigation is in beta and is currently available in the United States only. Some
features of Android 2.0 are not available on Android 1.6, for example, the
ability to use the "navigate to" voice command as shown in Google's demo video.
However, you can still create a shortcut that will allow you to launch
Navigation and start getting directions to a specific place from your current
location with just a single touch from your home screen.
Cheers ~ Arne
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