Gears Geolocation API Updated for Wifi

The Google Gears Geolocation API has been updated. The Geolocation API is able to triangulate a mobile phone user's location from nearby cell-phone masts to get a position fix. Now the Geolocation API can also determine a user's position from WiFi signals. That isn't the end of the good news for developers either, because according to the Google UK Developer blog,

"there's no extra work for you as a developer. Gears simply considers Wi-Fi as an additional source of information and will return the best position estimate it can."

This move seems a direct response by Google to Mozilla Labs Geode, which uses Skyhook’s Loki technology to map the Wifi signals in an area to determine location.

The Google Code blog names three services that they say are using the Geolocation API:

• lastminute.com's new Radar application allows users to find nearby hotels
• ITN's Google Earth mash up in Firefox allows users to see nearby news stories (see post below)
• Rummble's social discovery site
  

Via: Google Code Blog: Introducing the Gears Geolocation API for all laptop WiFi users &
UK Developer Blog: Increased Accuracy for Location in the Browser

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