MapQuest rolls out 360 View, MapQuest 4 Mobile v.1.2
MapQuest is rolling out the early Christmas presents from its mapping platform this week, with the beginnings of its new Street View/Streetside-like street level imagery availability, dubbed 360 View, and enhancements to its mobile product line.
360 View provides panoramic photographic coverage of 30 American cities and 13 suburbs currently and works like Google Street View or Microsoft Streetside. Horizontally images can be panned 360 degrees while vertical images have the ability to move 160 degrees. You can read more about it here, but in my opinion MapQuest is a little late to the game to catch up to Google.
Its mobile product updates may be a little more promising to the company’s own fortunes. Its MapQuest 4 Mobile iPhone application is now available in version 1.2 with a number of new features including:
- walking directions for pedestrian-only paths
- map styles with terrain and vegetation imagery similar to that found on mapquest.com
- a Directions Mode which allows users to expand and contract their route narrative to increase actual map space
- Metric units support
MapQuest will also be available with GPS support for Android phones and the iPhone’s Safari browser so you’ll have your location automatically found, eliminating some of the hassle of inputing it yourself. A Blackberry version is also now available from the Blackberry App World.
