Windows Phone Thoughts: Google Maps 4.1 Adds Voice Search

"We understand that typing on phones isn't as easy or fast as talking into them. As a result, we're big fans of letting you search in Google Maps for mobile in the most natural way possible -- with your voice! Not wanting the BlackBerry and Android folks to have all the fun, today we're happy to announce Search by voice in Google Maps 4.1 on Windows Mobile and Symbian S60 phones. Search by voice lets you easily search for anything by simply speaking your search terms instead of typing them. Just open Google Maps, press your phone's "call" button, and clearly speak your search term like "Park Plaza.""

Google has added voice search to its latest version of Google Maps for Windows Mobile, so instead of typing, you can now speak your places, addresses, businesses, and types of businesses directly to the phone. On top of that, the app features a redesigned settings page where you can configure your voice language (multiple English accents and Mandarin are supported). As always, this is a free update, so head over to the Google Maps for mobile web page and start downloading.