It was only a matter of time before Google+ Local started spreading to the mobile space, and iOS looks to be its first landing spot through a rebadge of the Google Places app. Apart from achieving harmony with Google's rapidly swelling social universe and letting us check Zagat ratings for nearby establishments, the update slips in the same voice search that Google has had in its primary Google Search app: we won't have to search for the best Vietnamese cuisine with that archaic keyboard. The refresh makes it similarly easy to find locations that aren't directly close by, and there's a tighter login process to keep that bar search history away from prying eyes. If you're a social adventurer with an iPhone or iPod touch, Google just gave your expeditions a shot in the arm.

[Thanks, Bono]

Google Places for iOS becomes Google+ Local, adds voice search in the process originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 03 Jul 2012 05:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.