Since the release of iOS 14 last year, Google has been revamping its iPhone and iPad apps to add support for Home Screen widgets. The company recently added customizable wallpapers to its Google app widgets, Search and Quick Actions widgets to Google Chrome, Your Memories widget to Google Photos, and Search, Compose, and View widgets to its Gmail app on iOS and iPadOS.
Google Maps Search Tip: Quickly find restaurants, gas stations and more
Google is now updating its Google Maps app on iPhones and iPads by adding widgets for easy access to location search and commute information. For now, you can add two Google Maps widgets to your iOS home screen: Know Before You Go and Find Places Nearby.
The first of these two – “Know before you go” is a 1×1 square shortcut that will show you a small map on your home screen of the area around you if you have your location turned on. When you click on this widget, you should be able to see your whereabouts full screen with the traffic layer on top.
The second widget – “Find places nearby” is a larger 4×1 rectangular widget that offers various functionalities, much like other Google app widgets in the past. This widget has a pill-shaped search bar at the top, followed by shortcuts for finding restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores, and cafes near you. Using the search functionality on the Maps widget opens the search field in the Google Maps app and also loads the keyboard at the bottom.
