In addition to mobile search features like autocomplete, Voice Search, Google Goggles, Google Instant, and Instant Previews, Google has now introduced two new mobile search features: faster local searches and faster search building. They are both now available on Android (version 2.2+) and iOS (version 4.0+) in 40 languages worldwide.
To make it easier for people to search for what's around them, Google has introduced new shortcuts to commonly searched local categories, like restaurants, coffee shops and bars, in the form of icons on the mobile Google homepage. More importantly, the results page now has a map with markers for your current location and the places around you. When you scroll through the results, the map remains at the top of the page and adjusts automatically to the listing you are looking at. Tapping on a result will quickly show you more about a place. Here's how it works:
Google has also made it easier to build more complicated searches on supported mobile devices. You can now add suggested phrases to the search box, a feature already available on the Google Search app for Android and iOS devices. Here's how to search faster with less typing in your mobile browser:
Google says it is seeing mobile search grow at an exponential rate, increasing five-fold worldwide in just the past two years - a rate comparable to the early days of desktop Google Search. It's no wonder the company is investing so much in Android: the search giant is aware that mobile is its next frontier.