
Apple Maps, once a laughingstock, now dominates iPhones - subdane
http://bigstory.ap.org/df90458e58564f19b4b7c8510f9baa67
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FussyZeus
Speaking as a developer and as someone who spends a lot of time configuring
and using iPhones, this is is not surprising and indicative of nothing. The
native Apple apps on iPhones have access to resources we as third party
developer's can't touch, and integration with each other that no third party
developer can even come close to matching unless we reinvent half the OS. Add
to it that the only way we're allowed to make, say, a navigation app is to
offer a service that a native Apple app does not (we're not allowed to
"duplicate functionality," per the developer agreement) and stories like this
mean absolutely dick to me. Of course it dominates the iPhone platform, but
stick Apple maps on any other platform and it would fall on it's face.

Better than something like Mapquest? Probably. And the integration tools are
great too, as are notifications on departure time and whatnot, but the actual
app, judged by it's capabilities is nothing compared to Google Maps.

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pjc50
Indeed. Anyone can dominate a platform if they've got the right to ban
competing apps from it. I'm sure the EU will get round to this in 2025 or so.

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rimantas
Why whould EU do anything to makers ability to do whatever they want with
their product? Don't like Apple, get Android or Windows Phone. Or will EU also
do something about me not being able to run iOS apps on Android. You see, I
prefer iOS versions, they are nicer.

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lmm
Artificially coupling distinct products like that should be illegal, just like
you can't make a car that runs on only Ford gas (you can make a car that runs
on diesel, or gas, or only on high-octane, but it has to be some published
standard). What the EU should require is that device makers offer a published
API (and published review standards etc.) and use only the published APIs for
any bundled apps, so that other app-makers can compete on a level playing
field, and other device-makers can implement competitive devices for running
the same apps.

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FussyZeus
Why should Apple be required to make the iPhone a level playing field for
anyone? This is like when blackberry wanted the government to force people to
make apps for their platform, that's not how the market works.

You're under no obligation to use an iPhone anymore than I'm under obligation
to use a blackberry.

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lmm
Because they're distinct businesses. Because it's in consumers' interests to
have competition among app makers even if everyone's using the same hardware.

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ioquatix
The other day I used Apple Maps to turn up at a business meeting. I didn't
notice it said "approximate location". Or, if I did, I probably thought since
it was in a mall that the location was somewhere in the mall. Anyway, I turned
up at the "approximate address". Guess how far off it was? Almost 5km. This
was on a main street in my city that goes from one end of the city to the
other.

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tdkl
Not being a devils advocate here, but this actually isn't bad.

Some offline GPS navigation app solutions locate a specific address number you
entered the same way - on the wanted street (which can be couple Km). But it
doesn't indicate it's only an approximation, since it doesn't have the correct
location in its maps database. Sygic is one of those from the top of my mind
and it uses TomTom as mapping provider, same as Apple does.

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ioquatix
I see. Thanks for the explanation.

We were not offline at any point, but I get what you are saying, it might just
use estimates. While I get that, we really were at the complete opposite end
of the street. This didn't seem like an error of factor f, but that perhaps
-f.

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uvesten
I wonder if it's not just because it's integrated with other apps, and a top
suggestion when you want maps. I still find that google maps is leaps and
bounds ahead for navigation.

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DavideNL
That, and for me personally also because i avoid Google products whenever i
can since i will be paying (for these "free apps") with my privacy. I only
resort to Google Maps if i can't find something in Apple Maps.

As far as i'm aware, Apple Maps is only usable for people who payed for Apple
devices, which is why Apple doesn't have to sell my privacy to create a Maps
app.

Google Maps however, is "free" for anyone to use.

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kristiandupont
I am curious (genuinely -- no snark) if your concern is mostly a
theoretical/political one or if it's more personal? Are you worried that you
might somehow be compromised because of lax privacy? If so, how? Or is it that
you don't agree with the idea of your data being in the hands of Google and/or
sold to others?

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DavideNL
I rather pay for services with money instead of privacy, unless i know my data
is being used for a good cause. For example i don't mind sharing my data in a
hospital with a university for educational purposes.

However, for example, I don't like sharing my data with LinkedIn, who then
sells it, makes a huge profit, and even tries to sell the gathered data back
to the users themselves in order to get full access to search results.

Also this is a good example which explains how people don't seem to value
digital privacy equal to "real life privacy" (probably because they don't
fully understand?) : [https://ar.al/notes/schnail-mail-free-real-mail-for-
life/](https://ar.al/notes/schnail-mail-free-real-mail-for-life/)

PS. to all the people downvoting, it's rather childish to downvote, without
replying/communicating at all, just because you don't agree with my opinion.
If you think facts are wrong then reply something constructive.

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markatkinson
I use Gmaps in South Africa a lot. The traffic detector feature is super
useful however it hass got me into some hairy situations. Just a few months
back there were protesters burning tires and stoning cars on a road, so there
were no cars on the road, so Google Maps took me straight through it. That was
intense, no damage luckily.

Then not much after that an area in the Cape Town CBD became flooded due to
heavy rains, and Gmaps directed me and a few other unsuspecting victims
straight into it due to there being absolutely NO traffic.

Suppose the warnings take longer to filter through the system than the traffic
updates.

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Spearchucker
We (my girlfriend and I) had the same same experience in the UK, on different
phones. She has an iPhone, which directed us down a seemingly low-trafficked
and very direct-to-destination road. I have a Lumia with Here Maps (Windows 10
version), which directed us on some crazy detour on roads showing heavy
traffic. Turns out the road the iPhone recommended was closed for
construction. Here Maps was on the money.

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zwily
When I was in NYC last month, Apple Maps walking directions were consistently
better than Google Maps. It was shocking. Overall, it's still not nearly as
good as Google but I'm much more likely to try both now and compare, than just
assume Google is always better.

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rossng
This doesn't surprise me at all. If something's installed by default, that's
what most people use.

In fact, I've found that the very idea of using a mapping app to navigate is
still foreign to a large percentage of people. If someone is wondering how
long it will take to walk somewhere and I suggest they check using Google
Maps, I still get a confused look about 50% of the time.

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bsaul
There's another way to look at it : the fact the apple maps is tightly
integrated to iOS also means that it "contaminates" all the other services for
the OS with its bad quality.

I would love to have siri use google services to guide me on a map. Or
calendar show me locations on google maps. Yet, every time i use those great
services, i have a bad experience because of Apple Maps.

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joosters
What's good is that Apple Maps is slowly improving. They do seem to be fixing
inaccuracies and problems. However, it's still crap. In my local streets, I
can see countless mistakes (businesses in the wrong place, out-of-date
entries, etc)

There's also now a problem with _too much_ information, of the wrong kind. For
instance, I opened up Maps the other day to discover that it listed a
children's clothing shop just opposite my house. I live on a residential
street, there's no shop there!

Intrigued, I clicked on the marker, visited their web page and found out that
yes, the company does exist, but it's an online shop and the owner just
happens to live near me. So Apple have scraped a database of companies and
found lots of registered addresses, but putting this information on the map
unfiltered is completely useless.

They've got a lot more improvements to make...

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vilya
I still have a lingering distrust of Apple Maps, thanks to its disastrous
launch. It's good to hear that it's getting better, because Google Maps - at
least around London - seems to be getting worse. Some road names that used to
be correct have been renamed incorrectly (e.g. Upper Richmond Road now shows
up as South Circular Road) and others have changed to use a correct but
uncommon name (the M25 - probably the busiest motorway in the whole of the UK!
- shows up as "London Orbital Motorway", which is a name I don't think anyone
has used for it since before Google even existed). I've reported all these of
course, but as always there's no way of knowing if the bug report will ever be
seen by a human. Maybe it's time to give Apple Maps a second chance.

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PerfectElement
Just yesterday, I made the mistake of asking Siri where the closest UPS store
was. After a 15 minute drive, there was no UPS store at the destination. Had
to use Google Maps instead, which took me to the correct location.

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MagnumOpus
> But ultimately, Apple Maps doesn't need to be the best. It just needs to be
> good enough that its users won't look for something else.

Spot on. Being given the default spot will keep Apple Maps in the same
position as Internet Explorer 6 was in the noughties and iTunes has been for
the past six years: Since the app is the default and there is nothing to gain
by improving it, with time any ambitious developers will migrate away and it
will stay barely good enough not to be an embarrassment.

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SoreGums
I had a go at showing an iPhone user where something was on Maps - I failed...
(after i had just done it on my phone)

I use Android and Google Maps just works, has stars and is awesome. Finds
everything when you search for it and just works. Plus browser to device or
device to browser via stars is great. There are some annoying things, however
the big things work well.

Apple Maps is a pile of junk :/

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bshimmin
Slightly off-topic, but I can honestly say I've never once used Apple's Maps
application that now comes with Mac OS X (not iOS). Does anyone use this? It
probably ought to be faster or better integrated or _something_ than opening
Google Maps in a web browser, but, despite being in the dock, I just never,
ever remember to use it...

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plg
I'm not in a big city and not in the USA, and Apple Maps routinely sends me to
the wrong place when I lookup addresses.

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threeseed
This shouldn't be surprising. It has primary position on iOS and has tight
integration with Siri, Apple Watch, Continuity, Contacts etc.

It has a terrible navigation backend (has no qualms about suggesting
destinations in other countries) but you only notice it if you compare it say
Google Maps.

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jinushaun
I actually make an effort to regularly use Apple Maps in order to fix their
bad data, and it still hasn't quite replaced Google Maps for me.

Google Maps is still way better by every metric (accuracy, design, user
experience, navigation, etc) except NYC subway entrances.

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pinaceae
The power of default.

Never underestimate it - Dropbox should be worried about such a move.

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mtgx
The mighty power of defaults.

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jayarcanum
Waze

