Google has removed the popular Google Street View application for Android and Apple devices. This application was known for providing users with 360-degree street-level views of various locations worldwide, which was helpful for exploring new places, checking out potential travel destinations, and planning routes.
The StreetView app contained unique features that were not available anywhere else. With its removal, these features are no longer accessible to users.
Many used to go to Google Maps and watch those small blue dots for 360-degree photos. People could upload 360-degree photos and attach them to a specific point on Google Maps for everyone to see. This feature was used by millions of people worldwide to view places they have not been to, and places that the Google StreetView can reach. The only way for anyone to upload 360 photos onto Google Maps was by using the StreetView App which Google has removed.
Recently, Google has informed users that they can upload 360-degree imagery using their StreetView Studio online. However, this information is not entirely accurate as StreetView Studio only supports 360 videos and not photos.
Additionally, Google has stated that users can upload 360-degree photos to an existing place on Google Maps. However, this statement is also not fully true as users can only upload a 360-degree photo to a known existing place marked on Google Maps, without pinpointing the exact location of the photo on the map. It’s simply tagging a place to a 360-degree photo without saying exactly where the photo was taken on a map.
It is worth noting that anyone can take 360-degree photos of interior places such as a village river or a mountain top. These are locations that a Google Street View car cannot access, and therefore, there are no existing places on Google Maps for these areas.
Unfortunately, with the removal of the Street View app by Google, there is no longer a straightforward way for users to upload 360-degree photos from these areas onto Google Maps. This is a significant loss for users who want to share and explore unique and remote locations on Google Maps.
The decision by Google to remove their StreetView App and associated features is sad news for many people worldwide judging by the number of comments appearing online. It will also mean businesses and organisations can no longer upload 360-degree photos of their places.
It is also true that Google too will suffer as less people will be using Google Maps and StreetView, and it will stop the ability for people to view places across the world using 360-degree photos within Google Maps.
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