Google Maps app hits 50 million downloads

The first Android app to reach 50 million downloads is none other than Google’s own GPS service, Google Maps.

That, of course, includes the fact that it is a mandatory app for all Android devices, but it isn’t just a case of mediocre software being forced down consumers’ throats. Google Maps is a formidable piece of mobile software.

The mapping app was one of the headlining features when Android first launched back in 2008. It offered street-level views of your location in real time, unlike anything the iPhone or any mobile device offered.

Since then, the mobile version of Google Maps has become the ultimate way for users to find their way around town, search for the nearest restaurant, or simply use as a standard GPS device.

Google has been refining its GPS turn-by-turn software, Navigation, and even offers one-click access to the GPS functionality as a built-in feature on newer Android phones.

50 million may not sound like all that much when you consider that every single Android phone gets it. But people do actually like it and use it quite a lot.