Google Maps now displays how busy restaurants are in real time
Google Maps has introduced an update to its mobile app, which displays how busy restaurants are in real time.
Although the app already displayed information about the peak visiting hours of establishments, it will now show live data as well as the average amount of time people spend in the restaurant.
The function has been available on Google Maps desktop since November, and is now available on the mobile app.
For Popular Times, Google used anonymous mobile positioning data. The new live tool works by rolling real-time smartphone location data into its crowd estimate algorithm, according to AppleInsider.
Using this real-time data, the app can now provide a description as to how busy the restaurant is (eg ‘not busy', ‘not too busy').
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