Apple Maps: Complete Guide to iOS 13

[WaxedJacket]

The one thing that hopefully is upgraded is an area based search. I found it very annoying when you'd search for a location by name that has many spots around the country and it for some weird reason would route you to the one across the country and not the nearest one. This has happened to me numerous times enough for me to stop using the app in the past.

 

[Alan Gordon]

That list shows 10 countries (out of ~200) and only some parts of those countries. Compare that to street view

Street View was launched 11 years ago. Look Around has yet to launch.

I'd say that having data or being in the process of collecting data for 10 countries, two of which (the U.S. and Canada) are quite large, is quite good for a pre-launch product.

 

[truthertech]

That list shows 10 countries (out of ~200) and only some parts of those countries. Compare that to street view

Much of those countries have very limited Street View, e.g., businesses only. That's why Apple is taking longer as they are doing it much better with Look Around, blows Street View out of the water, and will be more comprehensive in those countries and no privacy compromises! Remember, Google keeps track of everywhere you go and adds it to your Universal Identifier file. Sad!

Apple Maps started out with a debacle, but they have now surpassed Google Maps in terms of accuracy and interface, which is what counts most, and Apple Transit is way better than Google's efforts. And Look Around--WOW!

Google Maps still has better search though.

 

[Creek0512]

I had to send a request 3 times to have a friends business updated despite the obvious (!) wrong entry.

Why doesn't you friend just you Apple Maps Connect https://mapsconnect.apple.com

 

[Smartwatchlover]

My experience with Apple Maps in UAE and in Europe is really bad: maps are so outdated (IMO 3-4 years old) that you cannot really 100% rely on them while google maps is definitely quicker in getting the latest available maps.

My son was in Manchester last week: in Apple maps the place where he was sleeping was still showing a car park while in google maps you can see that there is now a new building.

In the UAE the school where my kids go doesn’t exist at all in Apple Maps while in google maps it exists and has also a dedicated POI.

I mean, Apple should focus first on the basics (consistent and continuously updated maps and POIs), then people may move away from Google.

Still far away.

 

[s1m]

I already get lane info and traffic info and redirection due to traffic issues using Apple maps in Australia.

 

[JMO1]

Unfortunately, none of these features address the main problem which is lack of an extensive database of POIs like Google has. Anyone remember iOS SIX? 7 cycles later and still no dice. Carry on

I agree, I’ll type in a restaurant that is in my neighborhood and it will bring up a city in another state. Their POI is the one thing I believe is lagging. Street view is whatever, but having to switch to google maps to get a known location of a business is pretty bad. Let’s not forget Apple maps is seven years old, that should have been one of the first things nailed down. I don’t need to see trees and pools, I need to see where I am actually going
[doublepost=1563338420][/doublepost]

Apple introduced updates to many of the built-in iOS apps in iOS 13, and Maps is no exception. The updated version of Maps has a long list of new features that are designed to make the Apple Maps app better able to compete with mapping apps from other companies.

There's a new Look Around street view level feature, a Collections feature for aggregating lists of your favorite places, a Favorites option for getting to your most frequently traveled places quickly, and some other smaller updates that are worth knowing about.

Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.​

In this guide, we've highlighted all of the new features that are in the Apple Maps app in iOS 13.

Maps Redesign

Apple in iOS 12 debuted a rebuilt, updated Maps app that uses an Apple-designed Maps engine to bring more detailed views of things like foliage, pools, buildings, pedestrian pathways, and more.

The work done in iOS 12 is continuing in iOS 13 as Apple expands the new Maps app to additional states in the U.S. in 2019 and new countries in 2020.

Apple on stage when introducing iOS 13 mentioned these map updates and promised improved detailing for roads, beaches, parks, buildings, and more. Maps in iOS 12 overall looks similar to iOS 13 in states where new Maps have already rolled out, but there could be more detail coming in the future and there are some small changes worth pointing out.

Road Hazards and Traffic Conditions

When viewing the main Maps interface, the app now displays road hazards and traffic conditions so you can see the route ahead at a glance. Previously, this information was available, but only when turn-by-turn directions were activated.

In iOS 13, traffic information is visible on the main map too.

Junction View

iOS 13 adds a Junction View option that's meant to help drivers avoid wrong turns and directional misses by lining them up in the correct lane before a turn or an elevated road.

Siri Directions

Siri gives more natural directions in iOS 13. Instead of saying something like "in 1,000 feet turn left," Siri might instead choose to say "turn left at the next traffic light," which is an easier instruction to follow since there's no distance estimation involved.

Venue Navigation Improvements

When you're navigating to something like a concert at a large venue, Apple Maps now offers up improvements that are better suited towards getting you to your end-point destination.

Real-Time Transit Schedules

The Maps app now includes real-time transit schedules, arrival times, network stops, and system connections for transit directions to provide better overall route planning.

Real-time information like outages, cancellations, and other changes are also listed in the Apple Maps app.

ETA Sharing

There's a new option to share your estimated time of arrival with friends, family, and coworkers. Your ETA will update dynamically, changing even when there's a significant traffic delay.

Flight Status

Maps is now able to display up-to-the-minute information about flight terminals, gate locations, departure times, and more.

Place Cards for Businesses

Place Cards for businesses have been updated to be more helpful and easier to use. You'll see information like times of Today at Apple sessions when looking up an Apple Store, for example, or movie times when looking up a movie theater.

Look Around

Look Around is a new Apple Maps feature that's designed to be Apple's equivalent of Google Street View. Look Around offers up a street-level view of what's around you or a location you search for in the Maps app.

You can use Look Around in the main Apple Maps view whenever there's a pair of binoculars visible. Tapping on the binoculars icon delves into a close-up street level view of the location in a little card, which you can tap again to get to a full screen Look Around view.

Look Around can also be brought up when searching for specific supported locations by tapping on the Look Around card in the search results.

When in Look Around mode, tapping on the display lets you move through the Look Around area, and tapping a spot far off in the distance does a neat zoom in maneuver that's fun to watch.

In Look Around, all notable points of interest, like restaurants, businesses, parks, and more, are highlighted with identifying icons and place names so you can tell what's what.

Look Around is limited to areas where a car can go because it's using data captured from a 360-degree camera on a vehicle. That means you can't zoom into areas like parks or beaches, for example, but you can see what's visible from the street.

Right now, Look Around is limited to parts of California, Nevada, and Hawaii, but Apple plans to expand availability over the course of 2019.[*]How to Use Look Around in Apple MapsCollections

Collections lets you search for and aggregate lists of different locations, such as restaurants you might want to try or places you might want to visit.

Collection lists can be shared, so you can make up lists of places for friends and family visiting you in your city and then share it with them, for example.[*]How to Create a Collection in Apple MapsFavorites

Favorites is a new Maps feature that lets you search for specific places and then add them to a list. Favorites are meant for places that you visit frequently, and Home and Work are already added by default.

You can add any place you go to often to the Favorites list, such as a favorite restaurant or coffee shop, or a friend's house. Tapping on one of your Favorites brings up directions to that spot right away, so think of it like a speed dial option for Maps.[*]How to Add Places to Your Favorites List in Apple MapsMaps Feedback Form

Apple introduced a redesigned customer feedback interface in iOS 13, which is designed to make it easier for Apple Maps users to submit corrections for things like incorrect addresses, business locations, or operating hours.[*]How to Send Feedback About Errors in Apple MapsCarPlay

All of the new features introduced in the Maps app in iOS 13, such as Favorites, Collections, and Junction View have been added to CarPlay. The Maps app in CarPlay also provides updated route planning, search, and navigation.

Guide Feedback

Have questions about Maps, know of an iOS 13 Maps feature we left out, or want to offer feedback on this guide? Send us an email here.

Article Link: Maps: What's New in iOS 13

Google maps has a great feature that shows highly trafficked areas by shading the location color. Unmatched for exploring new areas. If Apple updated its POI data and added this highly trafficked area, I would no longer have a need to Gggle Maps

 

[truthertech]

My experience with Apple Maps in UAE and in Europe is really bad: maps are so outdated (IMO 3-4 years old) that you cannot really 100% rely on them while google maps is definitely quicker in getting the latest available maps.

My son was in Manchester last week: in Apple maps the place where he was sleeping was still showing a car park while in google maps you can see that there is now a new building.

In the UAE the school where my kids go doesn’t exist at all in Apple Maps while in google maps it exists and has also a dedicated POI.

I mean, Apple should focus first on the basics (consistent and continuously updated maps and POIs), then people may move away from Google.

Still far away.

Apple has been focusing on it. They spent billions of dollars and the past few years building their own "base map." That's what they are now rolling out. In the past they were dependent on third parties to make updates, etc. Now they can do quicker updates and have great new features like Look Around.

Also, Apple Maps has evolved so much that it is ALREADY by far the most used Mapping App on the iPhone. It dwarfs Google Maps usage. Apple Maps is used many BILLIONS of times of week because it works so well, and it is about to take another leap beyond Google with the new base map.

 

[laurieballard]

I have tried to use Apple Maps for navigation here in the UK a few times and always find myself giving up and going back to Google Maps as it just seems to work better.

 

[-Maxim-]

I would really like to ditch google maps, but Apple Maps is still 5 years behind google...

• No support for cyclists - In Europe there are many dedicated routes for bikes and e-scooters. Entirely missing.

Same here in Germany... Every year I hope that Apple Maps finally includes biking and every year I get disappointed

 

[Winni]

Every year I SO want to use Apple Maps, but every year I'm disappointed. Currently running iOS 13 beta in Barcelona, and Apple doesn't have one iota of transit info. Haven't even tried POIs but I imagine they're equally terrible

One of the many reasons why Apple still is only an American phenomenon and why outside of North America the vast majority of people uses Android on mobile gadgets and Windows on notebooks and desktops. Apple truly sucks at localizing their stuff -- just try a German Mac keyboard for programming in a curly braces language and the first thing you'll do is throw away the Apple keyboard and grab a Microsoft Natural Keyboard (which has macOS drivers) or some other PC keyboard...

 

[d4cl00]

Look Around fills in the last piece that I occasionally still used Google Maps for. Apple not only matched Google but beats it in my opinion. The ease of use of navigating via Flyover and now Look Around is far superior to Street View.

It was all worth the growing pains. Apple owns a critical piece of the data and experience used throughout the entire Apple ecosystem.

Remaining at the mercy of their main competitor would have been a massive strategic mistake. Steve Jobs made the right call moving to an in house Maps app.

True, but this is a content play as much as a feature play. I am happy to see Look Around amongst the other updates, but unfortunately Apple has proven to be very America centric.
Google even shows detailed 360 views of the town in the Netherlands I grew up in. I don’t care about downtown San Francisco. This is why I postpone any judgement based on how much Apple covers geographically.

 

[jarman92]

Actually, Apple Maps Transit is acknowledged to be much better than Google Maps. Sorry that it hasn't quite rolled out to Barcelona, it's great in Madrid, though that doesn't help you.

If it helps, once it is there it will be more accurate and have a better interface than GM. Apple could have done what Google did and simply import all the generic data at once for AM, but, just like with Look Around, Apple has set out to surpass GM. With Transit, Apple has set teams out to customize each region. This is much more expensive and time consuming than what Google did, but it makes for a much more accurate and better experience, including protecting your privacy, something that Google doesn't. Here's a link that explains why it takes so long.

https://forums.appleinsider.com/discussion/193899/why-apples-transit-maps-are-rolling-out-so-slowly

It doesn’t matter if it’s better (although I don’t agree) if it just doesn’t exist in a large number of places. Barcelona is a pretty big example, as one of the largest cities in Europe and certainly the most visited city in Spain.

I’m from New England, and there are still places where transit directions are unavailable or incomplete. In the busiest transit corridor in the world.

Also that article is from 2016, and references changes made in 2015. Apple still doesn’t have acceptable coverage 3-4 years later. And their indoor mapping efforts are rolling out even slower.

 

[BuffaloTF]

Last piece? I'd be interested to know how you've gotten around the traffic piece and the illogical routes piece. I've tried Apple Maps many times. Every year it gets updated and every year it fails. Google Maps will suggest alternate routes in traffic. Apple Maps gives me directions from my home to work that is the most illogical route anyone would ever take. It's terrible. But I will be trying again. (sigh)

Funny. Everywhere I go, Google Maps is the worst at routing; especially when considering most cities have one-way streets Google falls flat on its face... yet Apple Maps and Waze both give identical directions that put me in the right place on the right street to access where I need to go.

 

[iSayuSay]

It's been almost 7 years and Apple could only do fractions of what Google Maps can.

Street view? Traffic condition? All these old features have been on Google Maps for years, and available GLOBALLY too.

Apple Maps just started in 2019? And only part of California? In fact many of Apple's core features only available in select regions of USA. I guess Apple should only sell iPhone for California only

 

[Edsel]

I have tried to use Apple Maps over the last several years only to be disappointed again and again. I travel New England and Apple Maps has sent me in circles or off route so many times I gave up and went back to Google. Google has some problems too but they are dwarfed by those in Apple Maps.

 

[baryon]

Ahh, Apple maps, always about 10 years behind Google Maps.

Before adding new features, they should try and fix the most annoying one: when you type in a totally reasonable street name in your current city, but Apple Maps lists 70 possible results, gathered from all around the world, of street names, business names and district names that may or may not sound remotely similar to the street name you typed in. And the one you meant is not even in the list.

 

[Smartwatchlover]

Also, Apple Maps has evolved so much that it is ALREADY by far the most used Mapping App on the iPhone. It dwarfs Google Maps usage. Apple Maps is used many BILLIONS of times of week because it works so well, and it is about to take another leap beyond Google with the new base map.

Maybe in the US.
For the rest of the world they are still far behind Google with regards of map accuracy and POI.

And don’t get me wrong, I would love to fully step into Apple Maps but as of today it doesn’t make sense for me.

 

[Jeremy3292]

I guess my immediate question is: how many POIs have you submitted to Apple?

My immediate question: Is it the consumers responsibility to ensure a company's product is adequate?
[doublepost=1563365433][/doublepost]It probably is very relative to where you live but for me Google Maps outshines Apple Maps in navigation, traffic, and POI information. I am always amazed how Google Maps knows there is traffic on random side streets and back roads here in SC. I will readily admit Apple Maps has definitely gotten better over the years but I still think it lags behind Google Maps (and this coming from a guy who's last phone that wasn't an iPhone was a flip phone).

 

[chachawpi]

Haha, Apple Maps.

 

[dilbert99]

I'm hoping for a feature that when I navigate to a shopping centre, that it takes me to the carpark entrance that is best from where I am coming from as in there should never just be a single destination point.
I'm hoping that it will learn from the routes that I like to take rather than always going in a different direction.
I hope it is more waze like.

 

[tremlock]

looking for Satellite view on Carplay then I can make the switch

 

[achappy]

I switched to solely Apple Maps over two years ago and have used it in many place s in the US. DC area, Maryland, NJ, NY, Boston, San Fran, San Diego. Used it exclusively for transit in DC, San Fran, NY and Boston and it’s spot on. Every time I compare to Google Maps, the routes are always similar with GM being aggressive in its ETA. Recently I had to go around Baltimore during rush hour. Google had me trying to go through the city and only showed two routes. Apple had a third option that took me East first and then North around the city. Got there in 10 minutes less than what Google said.

I’ve also been using Apple Maps the past 10 days in Puerto Rico. Turn-by-turn wasn’t available 3 years ago but it’s been incredible how good it is. EVERY POI comes up (my wife is native). Remote parts of the island, mountainous towns, etc. Apple Maps has taken us roads that barely have lanes and we arrive right on spot. This has been on both iOS 13 and 12 (I’m on 13).

 

[stevie grant]

Until they add "report a cop" functionality, I'll stick with Waze.

 

[bochini9]

I've send more than 100 times a wrong address fix, but maps don't care. I use another app with the correct city name.