The appearance of the Google Maps map application has undergone a makeover. The update will come to all users in the next few weeks, but you can already familiarize yourself with it in the online version. The former designer of Google Maps was not fond of the changes.
On the right, a screenshot of the updated look of Google Maps. Mateusz Slodkowski / Google Maps
The appearance of the maps in the Google Maps application has been redesigned. Maps with a familiar and safe tone are allowed to get out of the way of completely different-looking maps, both in the application and in the online version.
The updated appearance of Google’s map application has been compared to Apple’s Maps application – and the similarity is undeniably remarkable. Until now, it has been easy to distinguish the Google and Apple map bases from each other.
With the change in appearance of Google Maps, for example, the color of the roads changes from yellow to gray. In addition, the water areas are turquoise instead of the previous blue, and the green areas are mint green.
The former Maps designer calls for reform
Former Googler, designer Elizabeth Laraki, says that in 2007 he was one of the designers who worked on Maps at X-service. He is not at all happy with the new look.
– 15 years ago I started designing Google Maps. I still use it daily. Last week, however, the team changed the appearance of the maps dramatically, and I don’t love the change, Laraki says in his update, which has already been seen by more than three million people.
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According to Larak, the new colors feel colder, less precise and less humane.
– The colors of the water bodies and parks are now mixing together, he lamented.
– But above all, the team missed their opportunity to simplify the user interface.
The appearance is a bigger problem
According to Larak, the bigger problem with the current Google Maps is all the clutter that has been blown over the map image.
Laraki calculated that there are as many as 11 different touch elements on top of the map, all of which are away from the actual main thing.
– The map should be a sacred space, on which only such elements are displayed that are very useful for many people.
“History repeats itself”
Google Maps was released in 2005, i.e. a couple of years before Laraki joined the team as a designer.
– History repeats itself here in many ways. In 2007, Maps had become a jumbled mess, and we were cramming user interface elements wherever we could fit them.
– The result was a worse user experience and a product that was more complicated than before. We had to think from scratch how the application would be simpler and scale better for future needs.
– It seems that it is time for the team to do the same again.