Locate Local Businesses Via Google New “Search with My Location” Service

When we are away in a new area or an unfamiliar neighborhood, we may have difficulties to locate the local businesses available in that area, e.g. restaurant, shopping mall, etc. As we are traveling or on the move, it is quite inconvenient to open our computers and search for the relevant places. This is quite a typical problem frequently faced by travelers, especially businessmen. Problems to locate your appointment venue probably might cause you to lose your million-dollar deal or make your clients upset. To cater for users’ need in this area, Google has announced a new service for Windows Mobile phone users called Search with My Location.

By using the Gears Geolocation API technology, Google’s “Search with My Location” service can locate and approximate users’ actual location using the same Cell ID technology applied in Google Maps mobile. The search result will revert to users the nearby businesses requested by users. For instance, if users are looking for Japanese restaurants in this neighbourhood, users could just type in “Japanese Restaurants” and Google will enlighten users with a list of Japanese restaurants in that area. This “Search with My Location” feature goes beyond identifying venues. Users can even use it to do, for example, weather forecast.

This search feature currently is available for Windows Mobile Phone users who are running Internet Explorer Mobile. Users can check out whether their phones are compatible with this service from the list here. If users’ phones are compatible, users can now surf Google.com and click the My Location Link to start enjoying the feature. At this point of time, this smart search service is only usable in US and UK. However, Google said that wider support will be available as it continues to enter into agreements with vendors.

Google shows you how this service works: