Google Maps update brings new areas of interest, tweaked color palette

PanARMENIAN.Net - Google spruced up its Maps app on Android and iOS on Monday, July 26, as well as its web counterpart, in a bid to make it easier to understand. The updated Google Maps has removed road outlines and changed typography, alterations that Google says make it easier for users to see traffic information and make out points of interest, train stations, and other key spots easily. The company is also taking advantage of this cleaner look to highlight new areas of interest, shading districts with a lot of stuff to see and do in orange, and allowing users to explore their contents, The Verge reports.

These areas of interest are determined algorithmically, using an automated process to pick out areas with the most stores, restaurants, or bars, but Google says it's also using a "human touch" in high-density areas to point people to the coolest locations.

The app's color palette has also been tweaked slightly. Freeways and highways are now shaded in oranges and yellows, hospitals and schools in beige and gray, and parks and water features in green and blue respectively. You'll see these changes live in both the app and web version of Google Maps now.