Photo: reddit user SlendyTheMan
The best news of the week for CarPlay users is a Google Maps update, as the Mountain View-based search giant has finally released support for the dashboard in its flagship navigation app.
Starting today, the new version is finally available for everyone to try out, and as many discover, Google Maps comes with all kinds of gimmicks on the CarPlay dashboard.
First and foremost, how do you enable Google Maps on the dashboard?
This is pretty simple actually, as you don’t need any setting or toggle to do this. Basically, once you launch Google Maps and head back to the dashboard, it automatically replaces Apple Maps in the maps card – this is because the latest app that you’re using, and which features support for the dashboard, is then displayed in the appropriate card.
Google Maps actually uses two different panels on the multi-view screen, the larger one that shows the map and the route you’re navigating on, and a smaller one in the top right corner where you’re provided with navigation instructions. This way you can see not only the map but also the path that you need to follow to reach your destination.
The bottom right corner is used by another app, such as the music player, with on-screen controls to pause the playback or skip to the next song.
Google Maps also supports multiple modes on the dashboard, including the satellite view. This is something that comes in super handy, especially when driving on a new road that you’ve never been on before, as it provides you with a better overview of the surroundings.
Needless to say, you can switch to whatever mode you want from the Google Maps UI.
This Google Maps update is without a doubt bad news for Apple Maps, as many people previously used the iPhone navigation app just because Google’s wasn’t offering dashboard support. The only thing that’s now left is for Waze to come up with a similar update and then the dashboard overhaul is complete.
First and foremost, how do you enable Google Maps on the dashboard?
This is pretty simple actually, as you don’t need any setting or toggle to do this. Basically, once you launch Google Maps and head back to the dashboard, it automatically replaces Apple Maps in the maps card – this is because the latest app that you’re using, and which features support for the dashboard, is then displayed in the appropriate card.
Google Maps actually uses two different panels on the multi-view screen, the larger one that shows the map and the route you’re navigating on, and a smaller one in the top right corner where you’re provided with navigation instructions. This way you can see not only the map but also the path that you need to follow to reach your destination.
The bottom right corner is used by another app, such as the music player, with on-screen controls to pause the playback or skip to the next song.
Google Maps also supports multiple modes on the dashboard, including the satellite view. This is something that comes in super handy, especially when driving on a new road that you’ve never been on before, as it provides you with a better overview of the surroundings.
Needless to say, you can switch to whatever mode you want from the Google Maps UI.
This Google Maps update is without a doubt bad news for Apple Maps, as many people previously used the iPhone navigation app just because Google’s wasn’t offering dashboard support. The only thing that’s now left is for Waze to come up with a similar update and then the dashboard overhaul is complete.
Google News