Google Maps Navigation

Posted on 21 Jul 2010 at 15:51

VERDICT: Simple to use and very slick graphically – a fantastic navigation product for casual use

PRICE: Free on Android 1.6 and above smartphones

RATING: 5/6

What struck us about Google Maps Navigation was its sheer ease of use. From the moment we selected the upgrade in the Android Market through to entering our first destination, we barely stopped to think. It’s about as simple as satnav is likely to get.

Being a Google product, the location search is very powerful indeed, coupling official TeleAtlas data with user-generated info, and making even the most obscure of destinations simple to ferret out. That also makes it very quick in use. Of all the satnav products on test, the person pulling out of the car park quickest was using Google Maps.

On the road, Google Maps’ 3D driving view impressed immediately, with smoothly animated graphics, uncluttered mapping and clear turn instructions. Its most notable feature is Street View integration, which you can use to bring up a photo of an upcoming junction or your final destination.

Where Google falls down is with voice instructions. While these are delivered in timely fashion, the robotic, text-to-speech delivery is scratchy and not always clear. This proved to be an aggravation, but what might push people to paid-for services is Google Maps’ minute list of features. Traffic congestion is highlighted onscreen, but isn’t particularly clear, and there’s no automatic rerouting. Speed camera alerts don’t come as standard, you can’t plot multipoint routes and neither can you optimise routes for speed, distance or fuel economy.

As yet, there’s also no way of downloading maps to a memory card for offline navigation, so you could have major problems in areas without a 3G signal, although it’s worth pointing out that planned routes are pre-cached in memory. This means you can get away with momentary dropouts.

Despite the shortcomings, Google Maps just gets our vote, and the reason is simple: it’s easier to use than any other satnav, paid or unpaid, and that’s worth an awful lot when you’re in a hurry to get somewhere.