Google Street View gets standalone app

Google Maps has unveiled a standalone Google Street View app that will allow users to contribute to a world map of landscapes, landmarks and more.

Google's announcement came as Ricoh revealed its latest spherical camera, the Ricoh Theta S, at the IFA in Berlin.

The new app will feature the capability to connect to spherical cameras, allowing users to capture and publish photo spheres instantly to Google Maps.

Charles Armstrong, Google Maps Product Manager, said their hope was to create a "seamless world map," adding, "The Ricoh Theta S is a great tool to create this imagery, and we hope it inspires people to contribute to the map."

The Ricoh Theta S captures high-resolution spherical images of up to nearly 14 megapixels and offers a fully updated design and user interface. It will go on sale from late October for $349 in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific.