How could I have missed this? I was killing a few idle minutes by poking around the web browser on my Treo 650, and I pointed to Google Maps. Instead of the “this device does not support Java” error that I used to get, there was a redirect for a prc download. Google Maps for Mobile.
Wow. All I can say is wowie, wowie, wowie. Slick, fast, easy. Google maps for mobile runs in its own app on the Palm launcher. The interface is Palm-like, accessible through the preferences button. You can get locations, driving directions, see traffic congestion maps…even view satellite photos. (The satellite photos are mighty teeny on the Treo’s screen.)
The biggest downside is the Treo’s sluggish internet connection. But it sure beats the pants off viewing Mapquest in the browser.
I can think of a dozen times when Google Maps Mobile would have saved my bacon. For instance, if I’d had GMM when I was lost in the backwoods of Ballinger Canyon I would have saved a lot of wheel-spinning…if only there was a cellular node out that far.