Google Maps has updated its iOS app to provide a real-time view of how busy a location is at the time of search. This is an enhancement of the Maps’ Popular Times feature. While "Live" Popular Times have been available in web searches since November, this update marks its debut on iOS.
Google gathers information about foot traffic to specific locations using anonymous location data from mobile phones. Along with showing how busy a location is currently, Google Maps now also displays the average amount of time people spend there per visit.
The "Live" data in the Popular Times graph is not universally available for all business locations; it tends to appear only for heavily trafficked areas in metropolitan regions.
Here is an example of the new feature in action:
The official changelog also mentions a new feature in Google Maps for iOS, which allows users to quickly search for locations saved to the clipboard.
To access these new features, download the latest update from the iOS app store.
