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- Google Maps for Apple Watch has returned to the App Store after a three-year hiatus.
- You can take directions from your phone or provide quick access to your home and work.
- It is not as powerful as Apple Maps, but it is an important alternative.
It’s been a month since Google announced the return of Maps for the Apple Watch, and now it’s finally here. Google has released the Apple Watch version of Maps (via 9to5Google) as part of an iOS app update, putting some common navigation options on your wrist.
This is not as separate from your iPhone as Apple Maps, but it does provide many of the essentials for getting around town. You can quickly get directions to your home, work, and saved destinations. You’ll have to start navigating to any other destination on your phone, but Google Maps can provide detailed directions in the Apple Watch app for driving, biking, public transportation, and walking.
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The app is also a mostly well-behaved Apple Watch citizen, with vibration-based directional cues (similar to Apple Maps) and a complication to quickly start routing from the watch face. However, there are no live maps. Unlike Apple’s solution, you will need to check your iPhone if you need a visual confirmation of where to turn. Otherwise you are limited to basic on-screen signs with icons and street names as the only reference points.
So it won’t necessarily replace Apple Maps with the Google app. That’s particularly true if you have a cellular Apple Watch and want to leave your iPhone at home for a quick walk to the store. However, this gives you an important alternative. It’s also good news if you’re a fan of Google’s ecosystem – you can use its mapping software on a smartwatch even if you’re not using Wear OS.
