Unveiled at its I/O event earlier this year, Google is now rolling out a cool feature for Maps that offers 3D fly-around views of famous landmarks.
The new Immersive Views feature is available for both iOS and Android and offers highly detailed aerial views of well-known places such as London’s Big Ben, New York City’s Empire State Building, and Tokyo’s Skytree.
Keen to try the feature? Simply use Maps to find one of the landmarks above and then glance down at the bottom of the display where the photos appear. The one at the far left is the one you’re after. Select it to make it full screen, and then enjoy the show.
After that, search for other landmarks to see if they’re one of the 100 or so places that Immersive Views works for at launch.
To build the feature, Google said it fused billions of aerial and street level images to create what it describes as a “high-fidelity representation” of a location.
The web giant said that when the Immersive Views feature is fully ready, the rich content will enable you to experience “what a neighborhood, landmark, restaurant or popular venue is like,” and even make you “feel like you’re right there before you ever set foot inside.”
It’s certainly a fun way to use Maps to help you get to know a location better — whether you’re already living there or are planning a visit — and adds yet another snazzy trick to Maps’ already bulging box of brilliant features.
Other Maps features being gradually rolled out for hundreds of cities in the coming weeks include more detailed data for cyclists, such as information on steep hills, staircases, road types, and traffic levels. Route comparison is also being enabled so cyclists can select the most suitable route to their to destination.
Finally, Maps will now notify you when someone you’re sharing locations with arrives at their destination.
Want to know how to get the most out of Google Maps? Then this Digital Trends article tells you everything you need to know.