Apple Exec Explains Why You Should Use Apple Maps

[Jambalaya]

What is that feature?

I've been all in on Apple Maps for years now. It's been excellent at route planning and navigation, but it still lags behind Google when it comes to POIs (points of interest). I'm still hitting on too many occasions when I have to look for a restaurant or something on Google Maps and then use Apple Maps to navigate to it.

My other big wish list item is offline maps which can be super handy in areas of poor internet connectivity, or when travelling.

Still, I'm very impressed with the improvements to rendering and detail, and I use the Guides feature heavily to keep track of destinations of all kinds.

Waze allows you to use it without setting a destination. It updates traffic, shows police speed traps etc etc

Another core feature of Waze is its a social network so if a car breaks down another user can mark that immediately and then rest of Wazers can see that. Includes roadworks and temporary mobile police speed traps

In order of quality for driving & functionality for navigation its Waze by a mile then Google with Apple simply nowhere.

 

[TechRemarker]

Apple Maps Product Lead David Dorn and Design Lead Meg Frost recently did an interview with CNN to explain the Apple Maps features that were introduced with the iOS 15 update and to explain why iPhone users should choose Apple Maps over other mapping apps like Google and Waze.

According to Dorn, there are three major reasons why Apple Maps is the best choice.

1. Apple is making serious investments into Maps to improve it.
   
2. Privacy is central and Apple isn't tracking your location for data purposes when you use Apple Maps.
   
3. Maps is part of the Apple ecosystem and integrates well with other Apple devices and services.

Apple's effort into improving the Maps app can be seen in iOS 15, an update that added new 3D city details in select areas like London, New York, Los Angeles, and the San Francisco Bay Area. There are also navigation updates that add more detail at complex interchanges. Frost said that Apple wanted to make maps "both safer and visually satisfying to navigate."

As for the 3D landmarks added in the update, each landmark is created by hand. "We pick the amount of detail we find appropriate and create a 3D mesh of the building landmark itself. And we apply it to the base map," Frost told CNN.

The full Apple Maps interview can be read over on CNN's website, and it provides more detail on features like Share ETA, CarPlay, real-time AR walking directions, and more.

Article Link: Apple Exec Explains Why You Should Use Apple Maps

Apple Maps continues to improve and I use it most of the time for all my small day to day travel since it looks the best and integrates the best, but if going on the highway far and want to be informed about speed traps I use Waze because while technically Apple Maps now offers this it rarely ever warns me since presumably so few are using it and so few are using it because that make it harder to report than Waze by hiding the feature under menus.

And anytime I going somewhere far and new I use Waze (or Google Maps), because I know they are far more likely to have accurate destination information. Apple Maps while getting better still is a far cry, because Waze for instance makes it so easy for the community to update and fix issues with a thriving community whereis with Apple Maps you can report and they do fix, its a bit of a black box, and no transparency into the process, so while I still report issues, most do not I imagine which is why there are so many issues compared to GoogleMaps/Waze.

None of the reasons they note above mention improvements into those areas of making the reporting feature of traffic items easy to do or being able to have community more transparently update issues with a Local Guide system like Google Maps.

 

[31 Flavas]

Only took them a decade to get it into shape...

In the decade I've been using Apple Maps over the US (so maybe it was or is different outside the US) -- Google Maps was wrong more times the Apple was. I'm not driving to ever single end of the US, of course. I'm not a trucker. But, that's just been my experience.

 

[jgulla]

You don't use/need cell service. Just GPS. That's why I always get the Cellular/GPS iPad model. You can use it with maps that don't need cell service and just the GPS.

AFAIK Apple Maps does not have the option to download offline maps like Google maps (where I can select a large area for offline). If you plan a route ahead of time w/ cell/WiFi service, it will cache the route, but that's not the same. Unless they added this and I missed it somehow.

 

[Chicobradley]

They Maps and Siri teams must be the same people.

 

[tongxinshe]

After 10 years, it doesn’t have one of the VERY BASIC feature — offline maps, and he dares ever to say that they put a lot of efforts in improving it? WHAT A JOKE!

 

[Grohowiak]

Nah, not there yet.
Especially offline mode among other things.

 

[jonnysods]

I use AM because I value privacy, but you need to make more improvements to it.

Example: today I'm on the highway, I'm looking for the Food Basics in Strathroy. Siri gives me directions to Ottawa?

I tried a few different ways to get directions, until I used the keyboard in CarPlay to get what I needed.

 

[Neepman]

Yep. Every bit as good as Google maps..... in 2005.

 

[Jeepguy01]

Apple Maps has become my go-to for in-town trips for two reasons:

1. Apple's decision to use guidance based on stoplights or stop signs instead of street names is an obvious advancement and makes it much easier to know where to turn (you often can't read street signs from far away)
2. On CarPlay, it looks much more pleasing than Google or Waze, whose interfaces are fairly ugly and dated at this point

That said, I still get burned on Apple Maps from time to time, most often with businesses being in the wrong location. For road trips, I use Google Maps for the better road closure/accident information.

 

[Kissmo1980]

Waze allows you to use it without setting a destination. It updates traffic, shows police speed traps etc etc

Another core feature of Waze is its a social network so if a car breaks down another user can mark that immediately and then rest of Wazers can see that. Includes roadworks and temporary mobile police speed traps

In order of quality for driving & functionality for navigation its Waze by a mile then Google with Apple simply nowhere.

You do know that Waze Is actually based on Google Maps?
It started as a fun project that turned into what it is now.

I share your opinion as well.
Waze takes the lead as it’s multi platform.
Not only updates from other drivers are better and more frequent-because iPhone users are still fewer than Android users.
Waze has a much better updated info and I actively mark myself events on the road.

I would use Apple maps in US. In Europe or E Europe - forget about it.

 

[TestedLion]

Waze allows you to use it without setting a destination. It updates traffic, shows police speed traps etc etc

Another core feature of Waze is its a social network so if a car breaks down another user can mark that immediately and then rest of Wazers can see that. Includes roadworks and temporary mobile police speed traps

In order of quality for driving & functionality for navigation its Waze by a mile then Google with Apple simply nowhere.

This is all I want. Notifications for police and hazards. Could give AF about the rest because that functionality is so baked into the premise of navigation if you can't deliver, you deserve to fail.

 

[kave]

Apple Maps Product Lead David Dorn and Design Lead Meg Frost recently did an interview with CNN to explain the Apple Maps features that were introduced with the iOS 15 update and to explain why iPhone users should choose Apple Maps over other mapping apps like Google and Waze.

According to Dorn, there are three major reasons why Apple Maps is the best choice.

1. Apple is making serious investments into Maps to improve it.
   
2. Privacy is central and Apple isn't tracking your location for data purposes when you use Apple Maps.
   
3. Maps is part of the Apple ecosystem and integrates well with other Apple devices and services.

Apple's effort into improving the Maps app can be seen in iOS 15, an update that added new 3D city details in select areas like London, New York, Los Angeles, and the San Francisco Bay Area. There are also navigation updates that add more detail at complex interchanges. Frost said that Apple wanted to make maps "both safer and visually satisfying to navigate."

As for the 3D landmarks added in the update, each landmark is created by hand. "We pick the amount of detail we find appropriate and create a 3D mesh of the building landmark itself. And we apply it to the base map," Frost told CNN.

The full Apple Maps interview can be read over on CNN's website, and it provides more detail on features like Share ETA, CarPlay, real-time AR walking directions, and more.

Article Link: Apple Exec Explains Why You Should Use Apple Maps

I still cant share or save a location in maps reliably if the location is not on an existing adress, ie in nature somehwere or offroad. Nor can we plan a route with more than just a start and stop point..
In most countries we cant even find a POI near the current route. All this has been included in GPS systems for 20+ years and exists in Google maps. Its a joke, when navigating the above is more important than how a building looks on the map.

 

[LeadingHeat]

I would imagine the ability to share information along a route with others, like cop ahead or objects on the road or hazard conditions. Particularly the cop ahead lol it’s the only reason I use Waze, when I’m doing a long drive.

You can do that with Apple Maps.

 

[Canyda]

You can do that with Apple Maps.

Yup. And funnily enough, you can't report traffic/accidents/speed trap in Google Maps in CarPlay, despite all those functions being well developed in Google Maps phone interface.

 

[Bull 07]

Apple map the closest thing to a work of art and it works.

 

[6787872]

a decade later and they still have to beg people to use it

 

[PilotWoo]

They Maps and Siri teams must be the same people.

Yes, and the same team that wrote iTunes Ping. Remember that atrocity!

 

[starman111]

I would imagine the ability to share information along a route with others, like cop ahead or objects on the road or hazard conditions. Particularly the cop ahead lol it’s the only reason I use Waze, when I’m doing a long drive.

This feature exists in Apple Maps now.

 

[LogicalApex]

Another reason to use Apple Maps is they are a major contributor to Open Street Map. Maps are such a key resource for modern society it should be Open Source so we can all benefit. Especially since the bulk of the new map data is being gleamed off the devices of users and that's one reason Google can update so quickly.

Apple - OpenStreetMap Wiki

wiki.openstreetmap.org

 

[Djerro123]

AM is (at least in the big European city that I live in) gigantically inaccurate. I wanted to move away from Google (and I adopted myself in the Apple ecosystem completely) last summer, but GM is the only app that got its way back on my phone. It just was a horrible user experience, je UX is bad...

 

[swix]

Main issue for me is this: (from https://www.apple.com/ios/feature-availability/#maps-speed-limits) : why so few countries, still in 2021, 2022 in a few days ? Maps is useless for drivers and CarPlay use without that, so no other way than Waze (or Garmin & co. with subscriptions then). It would be nice if the Maps devs would not spend 98% of their time for US/UK-only features, but we're getting used to this unfortunately... Cheers from France/Switzerland/Germany.

 

[MauiPa]

When they make significant progress on point 1, I may start using it. It certainly is getting better. It's just not as good as Google Maps at the moment.

Not true. You are simply stating your preference which is fine but not a quality difference. For me maps is quick and efficient to set up and use, gives me better information than google (google has misdirected me theee times this year)

But ok I’ll admit my choice is preference because I use it more. They are all good enough differences are only familiarity and preference

 

[Kylo83]

No one talks about the Tom tom app but that has everything and it’s the fastest map loading and shows your speed your driving at and alerts are incredible it’s better than Waze that has become terrible

 

[zoomp]

You do know that Waze Is actually based on Google Maps?
It started as a fun project that turned into what it is now.

I share your opinion as well.
Waze takes the lead as it’s multi platform.
Not only updates from other drivers are better and more frequent-because iPhone users are still fewer than Android users.
Waze has a much better updated info and I actively mark myself events on the road.

I would use Apple maps in US. In Europe or E Europe - forget about it.

Waze did not start as a fun project based on google maps. It was an Israeli app with crowd data. It is now owned by google, so it acts like a mine feeding database into GM. People are starting to opt for GM instead of Waze here.

AM only work in US. It's rather nice there... but like iMessages, the world is far bigger than US and Apple is just so far behind google and Facebook (WhatsApp) that its sad.