As an adventure biker, I ask a lot of my navigation software, and I’ve tried every major provider in search of the perfect solution. What I’ve found is that each has its own strengths.
For example, I like Magic Earth for its intuitive interface and enhanced privacy; I like Sygic for its superior offline mapping capabilities; and I like Waze for its real-time traffic updates. However, when it comes to the breadth of features, Google Maps stands head and shoulders above the rest.
One of Google Maps’ new features that has flown under the radar for many of us is Immersive View, which has turned out to be the best thing to happen to the platform in years.
What exactly is Immersive View?
The concept behind Google Maps’ new feature
Immersive View was gradually rolled out, starting in 2023, and blends AI, Street View imagery, and satellite data to create detailed 3D visualizations of cities and routes. It’s like a multidimensional digital Xerox of the world, letting you glide through neighborhoods, peruse landmarks, view a destination at different times of day, or even check weather conditions.
Provided your chosen destination supports Immersive View, you can travel through a photorealistic virtual reconstruction of cities like London, Chicago, or Tokyo, complete with dynamic lighting, moving traffic, and simulated weather.
For example, say I wanted to see how the Golden Gate Bridge looks at sunset. I can preview it in immersive view, looking east, with the light fading across the bay and the bridge’s elongated shadow stretching across the water. The app will even use predictive weather data to include likely cloud cover.
The benefits of using Immersive View
Deeper familiarization ahead of travel, understanding accessibility, and more
I can use Google Maps’ Immersive View feature in concert with Street View to plan experiences, not just routes. I can take a virtual tour, including landmarks, venues, restaurants, and even entire neighborhoods, before setting foot there. Even locally, I can plan my exercise routes and check the best conditions to run errands.
Immersive View also provides reassurance, whether it’s to familiarize myself with routes and surroundings before setting out, to help ensure my safety, and to prevent me from making wrong turns down a dark alley that wouldn’t be obvious on the map. It helps inspire confidence whenever I’m somewhere new, as I can assess lighting, terrain, and traffic before setting out.
If you have mobility needs, Immersive View could be invaluable, as it highlights the physical environment, including slopes, sidewalks, entrances, convenient parking spots, and steps in a way that no static map ever could. It is also a game-changer for anyone who uses a stroller, cycles, or who wants to check out accessibility, parking, or simply the general vibe of a new place.
Where Immersive View falls short
Is it just another distraction in a long list of Google Maps features?
I see some people dismissing Immersive View as more spectacle than substance. As yet more tech that we didn’t ask for, much less need. Could it be another device designed to gather our location and movement data?
There’s also the issue of accessibility. The Immersive View feature is only available in select major cities and a few famous landmarks worldwide. You must look for the “Immersive View” card on specific location searches to activate the service. It’s great if I want to check out the environment as I walk from the Eiffel Tower to the Louvre, via the Latin Quarter, but if I want to check out downtown Phnom Penh at 3 AM, I’d be out of luck. As an aside, the app is very data-heavy in Immersive View mode, and my device runs hot after just a few minutes of use.
In most instances, I find Google Maps’ standard interface to be perfectly adequate. I don’t need to fly around virtual London when I can navigate to the nearest Tube station or simply type in my destination and go. In this regard, Immersive View is extraneous. However, it’s essential to remember that this is a free, secondary feature that is just part of a comprehensive package.
Much more than looks alone
Advanced 3D mapping may be the tip of the iceberg
Immersive View isn’t meant to replace the classic Maps experience; it’s intended to expand it. Every significant evolution in mapping, from satellite view to 3D maps, could be seen as overkill. However, they are now indispensable to many casual users and industries alike. I place Immersive View in a similar category. It is not about presenting attractive imagery as much as it is about helping us gain a better understanding of space and movement.
Immersive View also provides a glimpse into Google’s larger vision for augmented reality (AR). It combines generative AI, predictive modeling, and advanced 3D data synthesis, laying the groundwork for the maps of the future, where digital and physical navigation merge seamlessly.
The potential here is vast, as the technology behind Immersive View could expand beyond city previews to help not only improve travel but also create large-scale environmental simulations, assist in city planning, and foster a new type of digital tourism.
The future of navigation has arrived
There’s so much more to Immersive View than yet another Google Maps feature. It is the next step in mapping, where we can explore our surroundings in greater detail and gain a better understanding of remote environments from multiple perspectives. It invites deeper planning, allowing us to explore and imagine with a clearer sense of place.
Whenever I am planning a trip to a big city or landmark, I make a point of searching for it in Immersive View. In this way, I become instantly familiar with the layout, with the benefit of a bird’s-eye vantage point. I see this as the future of navigation, whereby, as well as getting from A to B, we will have a greater understanding of everything in between.
