One of the most basic navigation tools in history, the compass, has returned to Google Maps after two years away from the app. The feature was added back in the latest official update of the app, 10.62, for the Android version, available on the Google Play Store.

The compass function is available in the “Navigation” mode of the Google Maps. It works like this: once you activate a route to drive, the app enters on-board computer mode. The tool will be in the top right corner – the third icon, with the red needle.

When you select it, the app stops tracking the direction of your phone and enters a free navigation mode. You can rotate and move freely around the map, and the icon will continue to point north. When you click the icon again, Google Maps rotates the map back to the north direction. Of course, the function is not a magnetic compass, but it is cool if you have always been curious about which direction your street points, or something like that.

In a publication in Google Support Blog, the company explains that it removed the compass from Maps for usability reasons. And in fact, the function seems like an excess, since the route display mode rotates according to the sections to follow the user. But I could be wrong, since the feature returned at the request of users.

Interestingly, the compass feature in Google Maps was only available to Android users. Those using the iOS version of the app never saw the tool removed.

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