The company is bringing Maps back as a turn-by-turn directions app and will be rolling out worldwide “in the coming weeks”.
In a blog post Google said the app would work by giving you “estimated arrival times and step-by-step directions to destinations you’ve saved, like Home or Work, and other shortcuts you’ve designated in the app.”
If you want to use it to navigate somewhere new, you’ll have to search for it in Google Maps on your phone and then pick it up on the Watch.
It’s unclear why it took Google three years to bring the app back to the Watch, and why it’s relatively limited still, particularly compared to Apple Maps. No surprises there though – Apple wants its first party apps to be what people use and while we are not suggesting the company is preventing Google from releasing a full Maps app for the Watch, it is odd that the new version is so limited.
Henry is Tech Advisor’s Phones Editor, ensuring he and the team covers and reviews every smartphone worth knowing about for readers and viewers all over the world. He spends a lot of time moving between different handsets and shouting at WhatsApp to support multiple devices at once.
