One of the major draw-backs of Foursquare is their requirement that you manually check-in at locations. You must open the app, wait for it to load and acquire your location, then check-in wherever you’ve just arrived. It’s always seemed a little cumbersome to me.

Apparently Google thought so too and have just updated their Maps app with tighter Latitude integration — including automatic check-ins and check-outs. Of course, this new feature is configurable so you’re not inadvertently broadcasting your presence at places you’d rather not let the world know about. The app will, however, detect that you’ve left a location and automatically check you out if you’d previously checked in.

With both Foursquare and Facebook now offering location-based check-ins, it’s nice to see Google joining in.

Source: Engadget