You might have heard that Apple’s new maps application is widely being seen as… a bit of blemish on the otherwise glowing aura of the iPhone 5. There’s even a Tumblr dedicated to mocking it already in existence.
So I borrowed a friend’s iPhone and I tried it out. And… well… let’s just say that I will be providing everybody I know using an iPhone with detailed and precise directions to every event I’m holding from now on. Because they’re going to need them.
I wasn’t expecting Google Maps level of quality, and at first, the app looks good. It seems pretty straightforward, even competitive. But use it a little bit and its problems quickly become apparent.
First of all, there’s no public transit directions. None. Zip. Zero. Nada. If you want to use public transit to get around, hope you’ve got a friend with an Android phone because otherwise you’re screwed. Directions in general seemed to be a serious problem: as I tried to take the iPhone around a few locations in the major city I live in, it kept giving me less than ideal routes, especially on foot.
Secondly, it was terrible at pinpointing my actual location. Granted that Google Maps is not necessarily superb at this either, but I had an Android at my side and it was more accurate than the iPhone ever got. Not helping things was the fact that Google had just overhauled Maps, so that any addresses I entered previously were saved on my phone already. It really underscored how ultimately more usable and more detailed Google Maps was compared to Apple’s version.
Not all of these problems will be there forever. I expect Maps will get a hell of a lot of updates in a very short span of time. But I don’t think that Apple’s maps will ever be as usable, up to date, or detailed as Google’s. Google is a search engine, and Maps is one of their crown jewels; Apple is just paying TomTom for data.
I’m honestly not sure why Apple took this enormous step backwards. I’m assuming one of two things happened: When the contract was up, Google demanded a lot more money, or Apple deliberately snubbed Google. Regardless, they’re doing their customers no favors and I have a sneaking suspicion that when Google Maps comes out for iOS 6, it’ll be a big hit.
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Lack of public transit was a conscious decision on Apple’s part. They don’t want us filthy poor people using their products.
Haters gonna hate.
Which is ironic, considering how many hipster live on Ramen to buy iPhones.
I LOVED using my iPad for maps because of the bigger screen. But I’m gonna have to go back to my phone. Nokia Maps are better than Google Maps anyway. Offline mode and augmented reality give it the edge.
GM does have an offline mode, though. Nokia Maps are really solid, though, got to agree.
Google Maps sort of has offline mode, but its nowhere near the level of Nokia Maps. I can download entire states, and searching and routing will still work when offline. Last time I used Google Maps offline, search and routing didn’t work
::backs out of thread before people realize I use a windows phone::
This (and the reported Wi-Fi issues) is why I’ll be sticking with iOS5 until Google Maps comes out for 6.
I haven no idea why Apple hasn’t just bought the company that makes Waze.
I agree, I thought the original maps sucked and started using Waze. Now the new map still sucks and I will still use Waze. So nothing for me to complain about.
Apple apparently thought Dublin needed a new airport so they just added one. Really hope pilots are not using their iPads.
Me, too. But for more obvious reasons.
I would not put it out of the realm of possibility that Apple, instead of correcting the map, just builds Dublin a new airport.
Either that or start suing businesses for not being were they’re supposed to be.
Would Google be able to put a Maps app in the App Store?
Sure. They did it with YouTube. And really, blocking Apple would be anti-competitive.
How did this get a seal of approval?
Bribery?
They must have been too busy making it rain with the billions.
iPhony
The difference between Jobs and everybody else is that no one at the keynote had one bad thing to say about Apple. Just hype, hype, hype.
If jobs was there, he would have “admitted” that so many customers begged for a bigger, faster phone that Apple listened, because “we’re not stupid”.
He would have been straight enough to assure us that before he’d let google bombard us with ads on their maps, he’d rather Apple experiment with their “own” map effort,”so please bear with us while we figure it out”.
He would have admitted that it was BETA, just like he did with Siri, because although he was a maniac, he had the capacity to be far more authentic than anyone else around’
That’s why we loved him. That’s why we miss him.