Google Launches Free 3D Mapping and Search Product

Google Inc. (CA, USA) has announced the launch of Google Earth, Google's new satellite imagery-based mapping product that combines 3D buildings and terrain with mapping capability and Google search. Based on Keyhole technology, Google Earth enables users to fly from space to street level views to find geographic information and explore places around the world.

Key features of Google Earth include:

• free software download
  
• 3D buildings in major cities across the United States
  
• 3D terrain showing mountains, valleys, and canyons around the world
  
• integrated Google Local search to find local information such as hotels, restaurants, schools, parks, and transportation
  
• fast, dynamic navigation
  
• video playback of driving directions
  
• tilt, rotate, and activate 3D terrain and buildings for a different perspective on a location
  
• easy creation and sharing of annotations among users.

Next to Google Earth, Google's local search product suite currently includes Google Local and Google Maps for web users and mobile phone users. With Google Earth, users have the tools to dive deeper into local information, whether they're exploring a vacation destination or researching a new home or apartment. They can combine multiple layers of information, such as cross-referencing school districts with address look-ups of available homes, business listings and public transportation, and save their results for later use.

For users interested in more advanced mapping capabilities, Google Earth Plus (US$ 20/year) offers additional features including GPS compatibility, data import, and annotation. Google Earth Pro (US$ 400/year), for commercial use, offers high-resolution printing and GIS data import capabilities.