Today, we’re happy to announce that we have added mall maps and map search to Bing for Mobile Browse. You may recall that we initially announced mall maps for the desktop last December. Since then we’ve been listening to your feedback and have been hard at work growing our coverage. We’re excited to share that as of today, our collection of more than 400 shopping malls is available from m.bing.com making it easier to get where you’re going and find what you need on the go.
Venue maps are a great way to save time and frustration when planning your next summer vacation or that last minute shopping trip – getting you in and out the door faster. Additionally, we now also provide the capability to search on the map. Let’s take a closer look at the new features and how they work:
Finding venue maps
We’ve made locating mall maps an easy task from your desktop or m.bing.com. Just search for the mall name on Bing or Bing Maps, then click on the Mall Map link in the search results contact card. Here’s a closer look at the mall map experience from your desktop and mobile device:
Mall Maps from your mobile:
You can also view different levels of a specific venue by clicking the “Level” button at the top of the screen and then selecting the correct level from the provided list.
Close up on Search on the Map
With this update, we’re also adding the ability to search from Bing Maps. When searching from Bing Maps, the search results take advantage of Bings Maps/List split view providing a dynamic synchronization between a list and corresponding map in a single view. Pan the map and hit refresh and the results in the list will change based on the position of the map. The map highlights the business locations as you scroll through the list making it easy to see where all the options are located. Clicking on a list item such as a business listing will move the map to focus on that business. Similarly, clicking on a point of interest on the map updates the list.
Mall maps are available on Bing.com from your desktop and mobile devices that support HTML5 capable browsers including iPhone, Android and RIM devices. To access the maps from your mobile device go to m.bing.com or from your desktop go to Bing Maps (http://www.bing.com/maps/). Check them out today and let us know what you think!
Roberto Bojorquez Alfaro – Program Manager, Bing Maps
Philomena Lobo – Product Manager, Bing Maps