Bing Maps beta: More good than bad

After lagging behind Google Maps for quite some time, Bing, with the new features, is hopeful of broadening its reach.

The two services offer plenty of common features, but Bing also offers certain features that Google Maps does not have.

So let’s talk about beat version, and the good and bad associated with it.

The good
Bing’s Stateside enables users to take a virtual walk through the various cities around the world, zoom in and out on various locations.

The bird eye view not only offers aerial view of places but also a lot of additional information. Just type in the city name and you will get the Wikipedia link, weather, photos, and links to categories like "Apartments", "Banks", and "Taverns, Bars & Cocktail Lounges".

Further, as you scroll over to a city on the map, you will come across the thumbnail images that will provide more pictures, giving a hint of the local flavor.

It is indeed a good source of additional information about a city you might want to know a bit about before actually going there. But if you prefer Google Maps’ simplicity, then this might appear a clutter to you.

Photosynth, a tool that lets users create three-dimensional photo collages, has been integrated into Bing Maps, a step ahead of the street level images offered by Google. It also lets users post images of everything, from museums to restaurants on Bing Maps.

With the Application gallery feature, users will now be able to save favorite searches within the Bing Maps.

The bad
The Bing Maps pop up window is clunky. It occupies the whole page. Instead of this, there should have been icons within the existing layout, which explains what it stands for when users run the cursor over it.

Apart from this, the current beta version is too slow and there is no button to go back; in order to switch back, click on the bottom right side that says “"About beta," then click "Stop using the beta”.