Google Is Ready to Resolve One of the Biggest Google Maps Navigation Shortcomings

It does all these by providing turn-by-turn guidance so you know precisely where to make a turn to arrive at your destination.

The main shortcoming comes down to the spot where Google Maps drops you off.

If you've already used Google Maps, you probably experienced this, too. Say you're on vacation and want to navigate to a hotel. You search for the hotel's name in Google Maps and set directions to this address. While Google Maps is a fantastic app to get you there, it sometimes sends you to the wrong side of the building, so you'll need to go around it, either on foot or by driving a couple of minutes more, to find the entrance.

It's happening because Google Maps doesn't know where the building entrance is located, so it offers navigation to the building's address.

The search giant has recently started work on addressing this shortcoming.

An early implementation of this update has recently been spotted online, showing how Google Maps will mark building entrances on the map. Each building, including hotels and restaurants, will display an additional icon on the map when you explore it at the maximum zoom level so you can see where the entrance is located. You can configure navigation to the entrance, though you must remember that you won't necessarily find a place to park in front of the entrance.

Many restaurants and hotels don't allow you to park in the front, as they have dedicated parking places or an underground facility, so you must look for more information on Google Maps. However, the feature can also come in handy after you park the vehicle, as you can walk directly to the building's entrance using the information displayed within the app. Google Maps can also offer step-by-step guidance if you park on another street and want to walk to the entrance.

The feature is still in its early days, so the existing version is an early test I didn't receive on my iPhone. It's only enabled on a small set of Android devices, but Google will probably ship it to all users later this year. The search giant has remained tight-lipped on its availability, possibly because the data is incomplete to show entrances for all buildings. The feature requires tremendous work to cover all large buildings and businesses worldwide, though I'd expect Google to require business owners to define the entrance on the map.

The feature will likely begin rolling out gradually, starting with the largest cities in the world typically supported by Google's most innovative ideas, including London, Las Vegas, New York, Tokyo, and Paris.