'Podmaps' to Provide Mobile Maps and Directions

[mainstreetmark]

Ok, first of all, I think the 5 billion feedbacks they have already gotten about GPS and countless press about it lacking is enough for them to figure it out. But yes I have sent it.

Second, the chip advances will let them probably include these highly wanted features and keep it the same size, same battery life, and same price since they are going to discount it again soon anyway, if not improve on all those.

That would be good if they can. I can only suspect their initial research budget has been recouped already, and they have plenty of budget for new stuff like this. We've already seen them double the capacity of the storage chips, so one might wonder if they'll simply keep the same capacity with less "chip" and use the extra space for new stuff.

Third, I don't know exactly all the smart phones that do currently have GPS, and I don't even really care. All I know is there sure seemed to be a lot of examples of ones that did when we found out the iPhone did not. And even if there aren't a lot, this is not the time or the market for Apple to play keep up, they must lead strong.

The current generation excels, far excels, in certain areas, well beyond any existing smart phone out there. Visual Voicemail, for example. Easy to Use for another. Multitouch. Apple appears to have spent time improving on some areas, rather than cloning competition.

Fourth, I'm really not that pissed. You can interpret my text as you will. All I know is I am not alone, not even remotely close. I have been waiting since before iPhone 1.0 to buy iPhone 2.0 so I want these highly demanded features.

Thanks You like my smiley better?

Yeah, I can't tell if "!!!!!" means "Apple, you guys are all idiots and the iPhone is crap" or "Man, Apple, I REALLY want this new thing".

It would be nice to have accurate GPS, of course, but I got a 1.0 version simply because all other cellphones/smartphones I've had were difficult to use. My last one was an "MP3 phone", but little did the salesman at ATT tell me that you needed an extra memory card, and it lacked a standard headphone port. My Treo.. don't even get me started on the treo. I used to have a whole webpage about how much I hated it.

You'll laugh, my /current/ phone has a GPS antenna, as well as four-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE radio, 802.11 AND Bluetooth. Also a touchscreen and a slide-out QWERTY keyboard. Real-time REAL GPS navigation? You betcha. Still camera? Well, a little fixed focus one. Battery lasts between 2 and 4 days, depending on usage. And I paid $275 for it.

I don't disagree that they exist. I'm just pointing out that I've never seen one in person, and every joe who feels the need to compare his phone to my iPhone would surely mention it.

Every freaking phone HAS GPS, because it has been made mandatory by the FCC, for e911 purposes.

No, that's most often radiotriangulation, which is not GPS. If the phone has GPS, then yes, your 911 calls are accurate. Every other non-Satellite-talking-to phone uses radiotriangulation, which is what iPhone currently does as well.

 

[sellitman]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU like Mac OS X; en) AppleWebKit/420.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.0 Mobile/4A93 Safari/419.3)

Hmm I guess this is good for people who don't own a GPS....but if you own one this is pretty useless....nothing can beat a GPS....if you get lost it recalculates the route.

True. As much as I love my iPhone , my GPS is my one true love. As a traveling salesman nothing is more indespensible.

 

[farmboy]

If you get lost that easily...

So does this mean that Apple is going to crap out on iPhone 2.0 with GPS AGAIN??? This may be kind of cool, but it can't recalculate or track where you are, so it would be pretty worthless I think. EVERY freakin phone has GPS and iPhone 2.0 better. I do NOT want to see another scenario where there are SERIOUS missing features on the iPhone, especially in the second version!!! GET IT RIGHT WITH IPHONE 2.0 APPLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

...maybe you should stay home and order in.

Millions have purchased the severely crippled non-GPS iphone /iPT so far, so apparently it's not much of an issue for most people. Many dozens of millions more with GPS units never use them. Despite the "gotta have its" it falls in the "interesting, maybe useful, but not essential" category.

AND YELLING!!!!!!!! won't make it so.

 

[tuneman07]

I can't imagine GPS is that important for folks. The only time I ever like to have GPS is when fishing- I can mark my fishing spots out- but it has to be very accurate (within 20 or so feet I would say) otherwise I can't see needing/using it. My old Garmin doesn't get within 20 feet so it doesn't do much for me- I think my Ipod touch actually gets closer than my GPS lol.

 

[skeep5]

woaaah.
peace out tomtom/mapquest

Does anyone who knows anything about the internet actually use anything besides Google maps? Seriously, every other map site is shoddy and clunky (web 1.0) compared to Google. I know mapquest was king of the hill in the beginning, but who uses them now? Anyone?

 

[morespce54]

that could be cool for walking tours.

indeed! That would be awsome.

 

[amacisbetter]

Not necessarily a unique idea

I may be understanding this incorrectly, but this doesn't seem like a new idea. it just seems like a slow way of doing something that can already be done. My Verizon Navigator has GPS functionality with maps and it dynamically says where and when to turn. I don't have to create anything, it just does it. I would just want my iPhone to do the same. i don't want to setup a route and then download some Pod-map thing onto it.

 

[MacFly123]

...maybe you should stay home and order in.

Millions have purchased the severely crippled non-GPS iphone /iPT so far, so apparently it's not much of an issue for most people. Many dozens of millions more with GPS units never use them. Despite the "gotta have its" it falls in the "interesting, maybe useful, but not essential" category.

AND YELLING!!!!!!!! won't make it so.

Yes, they never use them because they are not implemented the way it would be Apple style on the iPhone (example: every phone that is an MP3 player yet people just buy an iPod anyway). And history could give you countless examples of things we never needed before and after we got them didn't know how we ever lived without them and shortly became needs and standards. Every iPhone owner I know loves their phone and at the same time REALLY wishes it had these features. It not that it isn't awesome, but how much better would it be and how many millions more would they sell!

 

[funkypepper]

GPS should be included with ipod touch. iPhone users can do it in anyway with their gsm/edge network, but iTouch users cannot. How do you think it is possible to find a wireless network in the countryside

 

[barijazz]

Other than a walking tour I cannot see how this is all that useful. GPS units are so accurate and inexpensive these days, podmap seems sort of late to the game.

This is more for when you are walking through an unfamiliar city, you can just whip out your iphone and get directions to you hotel. If you are driving a car this is probably a little impractical.

 

[blackbelt]

This is more for when you are walking through an unfamiliar city, you can just whip out your iphone and get directions to you hotel. If you are driving a car this is probably a little impractical.

street view would be amazing for this