Google launches friend finder app

Google announced a new feature in its Google Maps for mobile: Google Latitude, a friend finder application available immediately in 27 countries and 42 languages, across a wide range of mobile platforms.

Google Latitude requires a Google account to sign in; then the user can easily invite friends from an existing list of contacts or by entering their email addresses. Within Latitude users can call, SMS, IM, or email each other. Latitude is also integrated with Google instant messaging service, Google Talk, as well as iGoogle, a personalized Google web page.

In the same way it does for Google Maps, Google uses for Latitude its geolocation web service, MyLocation, which blends GPS and Wi-Fi (if available on the phone) and Cell-iD. On The PC screen (iGoogle) the location can also be updated via Wi-Fi posiitoning.