After a long wait, Google revealed a slew of exciting new features for Maps, Search and Shopping last month during its Search On event. These features will soon be available to all users of the service.
Search
Now users can easily get more information about their favorite dishes, by simply searching the dish’s name! Searching for “truffle mac and cheese” will help you find nearby restaurants that offer the dish, who serve it, plus lots of helpful info over its price, ingredients, hours and more.
Google has added a new feature that lets you take and manage photos of dishes you find online. Say you see something tasty on the menu, but don’t know what it is or where to get it. You can now snap a photo of the dish, which will add “near me” when using the Google app for Android or iOS and finding out where it’s sold nearby.
As of this year, Google is introducing large updates to its core Lens AR Translate capabilities. It will let users translate text on complex backgrounds with a new AI-generated background that re-created pixels underneath the translated text, and then let the original image show through in a transparent manner.
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As for the new Google Maps features, Live View will be launched in London, Los Angeles, New York, Paris, San Francisco and Tokyo.
“Say you’re visiting New York with plans to shop and hang out with friends. Use the camera icon in the search bar to see nearby stores and other places, like coffee shops, banks and ATMs.” With AR-powered directions and arrows, you can see what direction they’re in and how far away it is. You can even spot places around town that weren’t in your immediate view at first glance.
Visitors can explore the near-by locations in a variety of categories, such as restaurants, bars, park locations and transit stations. This information tells you the status of the location so you can decide if it’s worth exploring.
EV owners can now easily locate the best EV charging stations near them by using the “EV charging stations” filter on the Maps app. With this filter, you can select “fast charge” and filter for those that offer your EV’s standard plug type.
Google just announced that they’re expanding their “accessible places” feature globally after launching it in the U.S., Australia, Japan and the U.K. in 2020. The “accessible places” setting can be found within Google Maps to indicate wheelchair accessibility, so you’ll start seeing a wheelchair icon on locations that are suitable for wheelchairs. Likewise, if you’ve got a stroller or cart, you’ll know where you won’t have to struggle up/down stairs to get around.
Shoppers
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Google announced a new AR shopping feature that is designed to make it easier for consumers to find your exact foundation match. The company says the new photo library features 148 models representing a diverse spectrum of skin tones, faces shapes, ethnicities, genders and skin types. It should be easier for shoppers to better visualize what different products will look like on them.
“When you’re looking for a foundation to buy, you might want to look at the offerings from multiple brands and price points,” Google explained in a blog post. “You’ll see what that foundation looks like on models of your skin tone, including before and after images to really help you decide which one is best for your complexion and skin type.”
Users can now explore shoes in augmented reality too. It’s a great new feature that lets you explore and shop for shoes easily and more conveniently, from brands like Merrell, Vans and Saucony. In the future, we hope to work with other brands to further expand access. We’ll be giving you a guided walkthrough of how this all works in our article soon! Stay tuned.