Google Maps Navigation now has the option to display 3D buildings around you.
The feature appears to have been around for a while, although it was only recently reported by news outlets reporting on Android, after Assembly debugging Shared a screenshot on X.
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The feature has been testing on mobile devices and Android Auto since at least January, but now appears to be rolling out more widely. For beta users, it should be available in Google Maps beta 124 or higher. It’s under “Settings” – “Navigation” – “Show 3D Buildings”.
While this feature has just arrived on Android phones, it’s already available on iPhone and iPad; see the screenshot below taken on my iPhone.
3D buildings while navigating are coming to Android, but they’re already live on iOS.
Photo credit: Stan Schroeder/Mashable
Although the Show 3D Buildings feature is enabled by default, there is a little trick to make it work. If you start navigation in the standard Google Maps view, 3D buildings will not appear even if the above features are enabled. You need to first click on the “Layers” icon in Google Maps and then click on the “3D” icon. This will enable 3D buildings in normal map view, and they will continue to be displayed in navigation mode.
You need to enable 3D layers in Google Maps and enable the “Show 3D buildings” setting in your navigation settings for this to work.
Photo credit: Stan Schroeder/Mashable
3D buildings may sound distracting, but they appear as translucent outlines on the map, ideally making it easier to find your way around, especially in large cities with lots of high-rise buildings.
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