The photo maps are updated by major providers such as GeoEye and DigitalGlobe. They are sometimes months old, and in some remote areas, over a year old.
However, new satellites are being launched to help keep them more up to date:
The road maps are usually very recent, and kept up by various map providers such as TeleAtlas and Navteq.
Of course, the pictures may not be real time, but they help to put your vehicles’ real-time location in context better than just a plain old roadmap.