How to use Google Maps' "time machine" feature to find old memories.

(Dan Tri Newspaper) - Google has just added a feature that allows users to view street images at specific times. Many users in Vietnam have used this feature to relive their old memories.

Vietnamese users are using the "time machine" feature on Google Maps to find lost loved ones.

Google Street View is a service integrated into Google Maps, which the search giant uses a sophisticated system of cameras mounted on its vehicles.

These vehicles will travel on the roads and take pictures of the surrounding scenery. The images captured will then be linked together to create a seamless streetscape system, allowing users to explore different cities around the world as if they were actually traveling on the roads.

Last April, Google added a new feature to Street View, allowing users to view street scenes from older time periods. This will help users see and compare the differences in the same location across different time points.

This feature was initially only available to users in a limited number of countries, but it has recently become officially available in Vietnam.

Many internet users have been able to reconnect with their deceased relatives through a new feature on Google Maps (Screenshot).

Immediately after the new feature became available in Vietnam, many users used it to revisit images of their homes or familiar places from the past. Among them, not a few users even encountered deceased loved ones in images unintentionally captured by Google Street View.

"Thanks to Google Maps, I was able to reconnect with my father and see how hard my mother struggled to raise my sister and me after he passed away. Honestly, I hadn't cried once since he died, but now, looking at his thin figure, tears just keep falling. It's been 7 years already...", a user shared a picture of their father, captured by Google Street View, on social media.

"Thanks to Google Maps, who would have thought that one day I would see my mother again through an image on Google Maps? This is truly a time machine that helps me go back to the past," another Facebook user shared an image of their deceased mother appearing on Google Street View.

Instructions on using the "time machine" feature on Google Street View

For computer users

To view old images of familiar places, access the Google Maps website on your computer at https://www.google.com/maps , and type the address you want to view into the search box.

On the website interface that appears, click on the "Street View" icon in the bottom right corner.

At this point, street view will be displayed on the Google Maps website interface.

On the street view interface, select "View another day" and choose one of the time slots from the list below to see street images captured by Google Street View at that time.

For smartphone users

To use the "time machine" feature on a smartphone, users access the Google Maps app on their smartphone and enter the location they want to view street images for into the search box.

In the search results, tap the street image icon in the bottom left corner. Then, tap the "X" to close the Google Maps menu below.

At this point, a menu showing street views by time will appear. Select "View another day," then choose one of the time slots from the menu that appears to view street images at that time.

Note

Not all locations have street view images available on Google Maps, nor do all locations have archived old street view images organized by time period.

Therefore, you may not be able to use the street view feature if the location has not been photographed by Google Street View or if older images of that location have not been saved.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/cong-nghe/cach-su-dung-tinh-nang-co-may-thoi-gian-cua-google-maps-de-tim-ky-uc-xua-20250702160905252.htm