Google announced many updates for a series of products at the Google I/O 2022 event. Including for Google Maps which got a new mode called Immersive View.
This new mode is similar to Google Street View but also offers aerial views, not just at street level. Users can explore a city from the air, like using a drone, then take to the streets to see the specific place they want to go.
Users can also use other Google Maps features when exploring a city with Immersive View, for example to view traffic, weather, and crowd information.
All cityscapes displayed using Immersive View mode are digital images. Google uses data from satellite imagery and Street View to create high-resolution digital models of buildings and features in a city.
Google Maps's new 'Immersive View' combines Street View with satellites: https://t.co/N99mv1RGCj pic.twitter.com/NtZ7Zd2mG8
— The Verge (@verge) May 11, 2022
"We managed to put it together, so we can really understand, okay, this is the height of the building," said Liz Reid, Google VP of Engineering, as quoted by The Verge, Thursday (12/5/2022).
"How do we combine it with Street View? How do we combine it with aerial views to make something that feels like you're really there?" he continued.
When exploring the city using Immersive View, the user seems to be playing a game with quite realistic graphics. Much like playing the Microsoft Flight Simulator game, which uses Bing data to build a realistic city model.
Google Maps's new 'Immersive View' combines Street View with satellites: https://t.co/N99mv1RGCj pic.twitter.com/NtZ7Zd2mG8
— The Verge (@verge) May 11, 2022
Reid calls Immersive View mode a feature that offers the power of Google Earth but at street level. He revealed that Google has actually been developing this mode for years.
"This is something we demoed years ago, and we were like, 'oh, like this,' but it really worked. Now technology has advanced a lot to make it feel very natural," explains Reid.
Since the data is stored in the cloud, Immersive View can be accessed by any mobile phone and device. This new Google Maps feature will only be available in several cities, including Los Angeles, London, New York, San Francisco, and Tokyo.