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Monday, May 20, 2013

Meet the new Google Maps

It's been a pretty crazy last few weeks! At Google I/O we previewed a new version of Google Maps, the biggest change since Google Maps was launched 8 years ago.

We unveiled the new product at the end of the Google I/O keynote, which was an amazing experience! Standing onstage at the Moscone center in front of 6,000 live attendees and another 1 million watching online was an incredible way to show off what we've been working on in secret for so long:

Keynote

User and press feedback have been really positive! Here are a few of my favourite quotes so far:

"When compared side by side with early versions of Google Maps, the difference between the maps of 2006 and 2013 is the equivalent to the difference between a Rio MP3 player and an iPod." -- Om Malik, GigaOm

"Google Maps for desktop: hands-on with the world's most-advanced web app" -- Dieter Bohn, The Verge

"The effects are stunning, with shadow effects, new design elements and social cues to check things out...Everything that the Maps team has been working on over the past ten years is here." -- Drew Olanoff, TechCrunch

"Why the New Google Maps Is the Most Honest Form of Cartography" -- Leo Mirani, The Atlantic

There have also been some great design deep-dives:

"This is made legible by an extensive overhaul of the palette and typography used in the design of the maps themselves, which feel more like printed maps in a book than ever (but in a good way, with subtle, exquisite motion graphics)" -- Matt Buchannan, The New Yorker

"After playing with the preview of Maps, it's clear Jonah's team has stepped further along in creating an experience that's accessible to a wide variety of users while at the same time providing Easter eggs and hidden features for power users." -- Joelle Alcaidinho, Apartment Therapy

"The company’s infamous era of championing 41 shades of blue is long over, as the company has learned to embrace clean lines, airy typography, and liberal white space across their platforms." -- Mark Wilson, Fast Co. Design

Read more on the Google Lat Long blog, or sign up directly for the preview here!

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