I'm in Mexico & every. single. time. someone gets lost on the way to my studio it's because they used Apple Maps. It's still a total disaster down here.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Apple Maps Gradually Winning Over Google Maps Users, Report Suggests
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Here in The Netherlands, it's trash. I tried to years ago, it ****** so bad I deleted the app.
A few days ago, after years of Google Maps, I decided to give Maps another try to see if/how much they improved.
I put on a adres 100km from here. For the first 10km I knew which turns to take, but I still turned it on directly before leaving to see how it does in a dense, old town. Well, the first chance it got, it tried to steer me into a dead end street, pushing me even further into cramped streets INSTEAD of trying to direct me out of town towards the highway.
I then stopped the car, deleted the app and filled the adres into the trusty Google Maps app....
A few days ago, after years of Google Maps, I decided to give Maps another try to see if/how much they improved.
I put on a adres 100km from here. For the first 10km I knew which turns to take, but I still turned it on directly before leaving to see how it does in a dense, old town. Well, the first chance it got, it tried to steer me into a dead end street, pushing me even further into cramped streets INSTEAD of trying to direct me out of town towards the highway.
I then stopped the car, deleted the app and filled the adres into the trusty Google Maps app....
LOL my built in Pioneer sat nav was the same. You needed to drive a few yards for it to know which way you’re pointed.
The thing with Apple Maps is, it has never been a focus for Apple. It's main reason for existing is mainly to be less reliant on Google's services.
For Google, Google Maps is a fairly important central product, because Google's main business is in search data. It wants to be able to index information about everything it can - and locations, operating hours, etc, help contribute useful data for Google's users. It just makes sense for Google to focus on Maps and do it well.
Until Apple has a product that is crucially reliant on maps, like an Apple Car, I feel like it will be a hobby designed to nibble at Google's marketshare, but never really meaningfully overtake it.
For Google, Google Maps is a fairly important central product, because Google's main business is in search data. It wants to be able to index information about everything it can - and locations, operating hours, etc, help contribute useful data for Google's users. It just makes sense for Google to focus on Maps and do it well.
Until Apple has a product that is crucially reliant on maps, like an Apple Car, I feel like it will be a hobby designed to nibble at Google's marketshare, but never really meaningfully overtake it.
"In 500 yards, stop at the fuel station and ask for directions. You're on your own now!"
Speak for yourself. A lot of the USA has no cell service and it’s been incredibly important for me to be able to download my maps on Google Maps.
I believe that’s the same reason why Apple’s other services are so janky. e.g. - iCloud.com. Apple sells hardware, first and foremost. And it shows. That’s where most of the focus goes.
I don't think it's fair to call iCloud janky. Think about what it's doing. It literally keeps billions of devices in sync all the time. The web interface is very Apple-like too. What's janky about it?
I never run into that. Perhaps you are often in a place where a building or some other structure obscures the satellite signal?
I tend to use Google for trip planning, and Apple for actual navigation. Two different applications.
Now that Google has managed to destroy Waze with bugs (intentionally) - I have started to use Apple Maps. I am enjoying it.. such a shame what Google has done to my previous Waze..
I mainly use apple maps just for the integration. I havent noticed it really lead me wrong. I hate anything google
To be fair, I’ve had the same observation with every GPS I have used. I was lead to understand it’s a satellite acquisition thing.
I am apple fanatic and love everything apple create but I will not trust apple map not soon. Apple map is good but google maps is just intelligent, you can sense which type of route I prefer m, for
iPhone users are increasingly finding reasons to choose Apple Maps over Google Maps, with some customers commending its clear public transport directions and visually appealing design.
That's according to anecdotal reports collected by The Wall Street Journal (paywalled). While Apple Maps comes preinstalled on all iPhones, the overwhelming majority of iPhones in the U.S. have Google Maps downloaded as an alternative, according to Canalys.
But that hasn't stopped some users becoming particularly impressed by how far Apple's transit route information has come. The app is often recommended by users for its cleaner view versus the more cluttered design of Google Maps.
For example, Jane Natoli, a Google Maps "power user" told WSJ she finds herself using Apple Maps more in her everyday life after her iPhone prompted her to use it in the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. The app knew she was at the airport and offered recommendations for shops and restaurants in her terminal. It had clearer information that was easier to interact with than Google Maps, said the 42-year-old.
A recent graduate from Georgia Tech shared a similar sentiment. At night while driving, she said she finds that the roads are easier to look at on Apple Maps, and there are fewer points of interest cluttering her view. "Apple's really good at making things look pretty," she told the outlet.
Apple Maps launched in 2012 and was quickly criticized for having incomplete and inaccurate mapping data, which led some iPhone users on dangerous routes. Apple CEO Tim Cook offered a rare public apology for the frustration it caused customers, and then iOS chief Scott Forstall was ousted just one month later.
Since then, Apple has made significant improvements to Apple Maps, building in new features and correcting lingering errors. Real-time traffic information and navigation options for pedestrians were added to Maps in 2013, which is also the same year Maps was extended to OS X. In 2015, Maps was updated with "Nearby," a feature that offers up local points of interest and transit directions in a handful of cities.
In early 2020, Apple completed a complete overhaul of its maps in the United States, featuring significantly greater detail including updated building massing, parks, sports field, pools, and more. A new Look Around feature in select cities is similar to Google's Street View, and the updated maps have been rolling out to more countries in the time since. In iOS 17, coming in the fall, users will be able to download maps for offline use in Apple Maps – something Google Maps users have been able to do now for quite some time.
Praise for Apple's offering isn't by any means universal. One user told WSJ she was frequently led astray by Apple Maps as she walks around Boston, while another user said his experience with Apple Maps via CarPlay had often added time on to his commute by taking him through neighborhoods with stop signs in an effort to avoid gridlock.
Apple Maps still gets a bad rap among some users, but Apple's continued efforts to improve the app appear to have helped reverse some of those opinions. "Maps has come a long way, and people have noticed," Craig Federighi, Apple's head of software, said during WWDC in June. Are you more or less likely to use Apple Maps these days? Let us know in the comments.
Article Link: Apple Maps Gradually Winning Over Google Maps Users, Report Suggests
Example to go to a specific place in my city, I sometime prefer to go via a local nice quite drive, but if I choose Apple map, that B*** keep pushing me back to highway ramp, google maps just kinda of sense my mood and if I miss the ramp and keep going, it will not try to put me back to ramp direction. I n cc an close my eyes and trust google maps but Apple Maps still have to warn that trust, another thing I will point out, when you are in in unknown city driving through spaghetti of highways and little white arrow for ramp or exit is life saver, with Apple Maps in many occasion I missed my ramps. I like in GM how the exit and the sign with green color appears on my navigation I have used navigation apps like many of you have not, remember Navigon. I remember paying $69 for the App and boy I can play my music as well via navigon app. lol
I do love the Apple map integration with my car Play, Apple Watch and tell Siri to
Find something.
By the way to all highway drivers, I use. app call iExit , it is awesome awesome app to find the chic fills or Barista
It definitely does use the compass and works much better in Apple maps than in Google Maps for me for whatever reason. Perhaps there is interference or tall buildings that’s confusing your phone?
Here in Canadian cities, it's exceptionally good. We only use Google Maps when following map directions from a Google search, and are constantly frustrated by the poor experience of the app. If often forgets to speak, or speaks too late. Never had that problem with Apple Maps.
I frequently have this confusion, too. "Turn East on X street". ... ummmm, which way is East? This confuses me every time until we've driven a short distance for it to figure out our orientation.
Funny that’s been the exact issue with Google Maps for me lately. The icon just spins, then sets up shop somewhere where I am not and can’t seem to catch up. Bizarre.
I like to use Google to find a business / check hours. It’s much more reliable in my area for that info than Apple. But then I put the destination in Waze for directions. Apple Maps only comes into play when Siri is involved.
I would argue there were obviously some haters mixing in and pretended to be critics. Yeah I was there during those days defending Apple Maps, and until now I still think it is better than Google Maps especially if you use iPhone.
Urgh I forgot about this annoyance. I moved to a new state last year and my internal compass still hasn't quite adjusted yet, so whenever siri blurts out a cardinal direction I have to look at the map to know which way she wants me to go.