Google Maps is a fairly fantastic tool for navigating the world, and the Google app has numerous features that you may never have seen. And that makes it easy for Google to roll in new features and sunset others.
Android Authority recently did an APK teardown of the Maps app, looking into the code to what might be hidden, and it spotted indications that Followed Places may soon be dropped from Mapsl
Followed Places is a tool that allows users to receive news and updates from places and business that are listed on Google Maps. Fr example, you could follow a restaurant through Google Maps and ideally get coupons and other offers about upcoming events.
That capability may be coming to an end, though, as the debugging team at Android Authority found code strings that referenced the depreciation of Followed Places. Those strings indicate that Followed Places may no long work after January 2025.
To be fair to Google and its track record of killing features and products that people actively use and love (RIP Reader and Podcasts), it seems like Followed Places may have been on the way out for awhile now.
Launched in 2018, the feature was meant to give people a way to easily receive news from places and businesses like offers, events and other updates in the For You tab. There was a + (plus) Follow button under businesses in Google Maps.
Neither Tom's Guide nor Android Authority know when this button disappeared. We checked out Google Maps on an Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra and in the Chrome browser on a laptop. We couldn't find a follow button in either system, making us think that feature essentially lets you save points of interest and categorize them.
In recent months, Google has added or improved a number of features across the Maps app. The company recently added AI with the goal of learning user preferences to help find places. It was meant to augment capabilities like a feature that finds EV charging stations no matter how hidden.
