Microsoft updates Windows Maps for Fast Ring Insiders with new Traffic Hub and dark theme features

The Windows team released a late-day update to its Windows Map application for Fast Ring Insiders on both PCs and mobile that bring a long awaited tweak and new functional feature for users.

In today’s update to Windows Maps, Insiders get an early look at what will presumably make it into the official release for Maps that includes a new Traffic Hub feature and the addition of system default dark theme.

According to a changelog posted by Redditor and Microsoft employee Dave MSFT, Fast Ring users can look forward to:

• Enjoy dark or light app colors—they now change to match your system settings. If you prefer your apps to be dark rather than light you can now have the Maps app follow your system setting for theme preference or always be light/dark. Plus you can choose to change the map theme too!
• Quickly check traffic for your commute, including live cameras, where available. We have always treated your Home and Workplaces special and now you can check the traffic to your Home or Work locations at any time. Just tap on Traffic in the app bar and you can see traffic conditions to Home and Work and your most recently viewed traffic cameras so that you can stay on top of the road conditions along your route.

Over the past two years, Windows 10 users have slowly been welcoming the addition of Dark Theme or System default dark themes choices to more apps, helping to round out the polish of the overall operating system.

With the recent redesign to Maps, users were only given a utilitarian stark color scheme as the Windows team rushed to add back or create new feature sets for the service and apps. With the addition of the Dark Theme, perhaps the Windows team is preparing its app for an AMOLED future where its on-screen presence is minimally felt on the battery life of upcoming devices.

Perhaps, even bigger news than the addition of Dark theme is the new Traffic Hub feature that enables users to tap into traffic cameras and highway alert systems to measure the traffic on regularly accessed routes by users. Now, users can receive a more detail report of traffic to frequently traveled places such as home, gym’s, work and more.

All of this is live for Fast Ring Insiders on both mobile and PCs, head over to the Windows Store to grab the update for your most used device.