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Ask HN: Apple maps vs. Google maps today?

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Re: Ask HN: Apple maps vs. Google maps today?

#51

Post by _nalply »

m_st wrote: post #14
zimpenfish wrote: post #8

Apple Maps is fine. The rendering is still slightly worse than Google Maps when it comes to putting relevant information in the viewport (street names, primarily.) But the search ... good grief, the search still sucks donkey balls through a molecular straw. It seems to lack any sense of your local context and location - which is kinda relevant for maps! e.g. frequently when I used to search for "charing cross" whilst…

Full ACK, the search should be contextual, but I get US results in Switzerland! Or when I search for "Train station", then I expect it to suggest me the closest ones until I continue refining my search. But I get results from other countries or that are very far away. Also "Train station " doesn't always give the same result as " train station".

Once I searched for a métairie in the French speaking Jura mountains (a métairie is a mountain hut offering food and rest) and got Metairie, LA.

Re: Ask HN: Apple maps vs. Google maps today?

#52

Post by piecu »

Disclaimer: I live in Poland, not US, so my view can be a bit different.

I use Apple Maps very often as I use CarPlay in my car (it does not have Google Maps interface). And I really appreciate how good these maps are, especially when I compare them to the initial release. They have very good coverage and are updated often enough.

The other advantage is that it really has good live traffic info. I sometimes compare it to what Google Maps or Waze offers (either when I'm stuck in traffic or with my passenger) and it usually better reflects current conditions.

The only think worth improving is calculating routes as sometimes it doesn't want to get current traffic conditions into considerations (especially when there is long route). And it is sometimes very slow in calculating routes.

Re: Ask HN: Apple maps vs. Google maps today?

#53

Post by thomasfoster96 »

adambrenecki wrote: post #49
thomasfoster96 wrote: post #29

The biggest issue that I (being in Melbourne, Australia) have with Apple Maps is that it is incredibly slow. It was barely usable because of the speed on my iPhone (even on 4G) before I removed the app, and is pretty much unusable on my Macbook. I’m talking up to a minute before an actual map would display, and often up to 30 seconds when zooming in. I know quite a few other people have the same problem - even the Ma…

I'm in Adelaide, Australia and I've never had this problem; I get maps within a second on both iOS and macOS, ADSL and LTE (Telstra in both cases). (As an aside, from what I've heard, public transport support being terrible in Vic is mostly on PTV's head, not Apple or Google.)

Strange - I just tried Maps on my Mac again and it was ~20s from the window opening to a map appearing (but much quicker when zooming out/in). I’m on TPG ADSL, which is usually able to stream 4K Netflix/YouTube with very few problems. But as I said, even the Macs in JB HiFi and the Apple store take a long time to load Maps, and I’ve had the same delays in Tasmania as well.

Yeah I wouldn’t be surprised if PTV bureaucracy had something to do with it but it’s not as though they themselves are bad at technology, given their own app has been able to track trams and some buses for years...

Re: Ask HN: Apple maps vs. Google maps today?

#54

Post by bruceboughton »

amelius wrote: post #37
arethuza wrote: post #3

I use Google Maps, Apple maps, Bing maps and OpenStreetMap Some comments: - Apple maps were pretty awful when they first came out but now seem good enough (and I generally use them for walking directions in cities) - Google StreetView is great - satellite view where we are in the UK is about 12 years old so useful for a historical view - Apple and Bing satellite views are good, much more up to date that Google's and…

Do they all support an offline mode, where specific maps can be downloaded in advance?

I recently tried to use Google Maps offline mode while abroad. I had a local SIM but limited coverage and limited data allowance. I also had created some saved maps via Google My Maps with pins of points of interest. It exposed a lot of bugs in the app. Off the top of my head:

- Without coverage, the offline maps work well and show the pins from my saved maps. Search also worked well.

- As soon as I came back into coverage or wifi, it would close the saved maps and then not load them again if the connection was poor.

- Also, if there is a connection, it constantly tries to load address/photos/reviews for your pins and refuses to show the name you've given them. Not much use in a national park.

- When online with a poor connection, search doesn't work and doesn't fall back to the offline maps.

- When routing, you can't add a via point when offline as it refuses to use the offline search index.

- Disabling mobile data usage for the app just caused chaos.

All in all, it was a maddening experience. It's a classic case of Google offering more features, but with less polish. I used to use other pinning apps for holiday planning, but they've all shut down or stopped working properly (Pindrop, Rego). I was hoping the increased integration between Google Maps and Google My Maps would solve the issue but unfortunately it's very buggy right now.

Of course, Apple doesn't really have offline maps so, although I use Apple Maps as my main maps app, they score poorly here. Of course, this fits with their traditional approach of no feature is better than a badly implemented feature.

Re: Ask HN: Apple maps vs. Google maps today?

#55

Post by Piskvorrr »

amelius wrote: post #37
arethuza wrote: post #3

I use Google Maps, Apple maps, Bing maps and OpenStreetMap Some comments: - Apple maps were pretty awful when they first came out but now seem good enough (and I generally use them for walking directions in cities) - Google StreetView is great - satellite view where we are in the UK is about 12 years old so useful for a historical view - Apple and Bing satellite views are good, much more up to date that Google's and…

Do they all support an offline mode, where specific maps can be downloaded in advance?

Not all with the same capability. Try OSMAnd - it allows you to download a country/state/city map in advance, and then displays and routes offline from that (it's an offline-first app, but can fall back to online maps). Uses OpenStreetMap, so check coverage beforehand, but unless in the literal middle of nowhere, it tends to exceed Google's.

Re: Ask HN: Apple maps vs. Google maps today?

#56

Post by Piskvorrr »

arethuza wrote: post #40
amelius wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do they all support an offline mode, where specific maps can be downloaded in advance?

I'm very old school when it comes to offline mode - if I'm going somewhere where I need a map (e.g. up a mountain) I'll either buy the relevant OS waterproof map, or print out a map and carry it in a waterproof case and use with a compass. Edit: I don't know if anyone has died in the Scottish mountains because their smartphone battery ran out but I've certainly been in plenty situations where if I didn't have some ki…

Commendable. A map that doesn't need batteries is the best map.

Re: Ask HN: Apple maps vs. Google maps today?

#57

Post by Piskvorrr »

smcl wrote: post #15

Apple maps is "ok" here (Czech Republic) but there's really no reason to use it, mapy.cz and Google Maps have everything Apple does but also things like transit stops, more businesses (mapy even has building numbers and cycle routes) and it also tends to be slightly more accurate. Here's a comparison of the three on my current location because I'm bored waiting on something: https://imgur.com/gallery/cFpcx

...and OpenStreetMap, even more detailed: http://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=17/49.17020/16.62639

Re: Ask HN: Apple maps vs. Google maps today?

#58

Post by heavymark »

Apple Maps has slowly gotten better and better over the years. I use it now mostly over Google Maps, however that is mostly because of all the integrations with iOS Homescreen/Apple Watch/CarPlay etc and the UI, etc. In the end, it's a better experience than Google Maps on iOS, but would definetly not recommend an Android version since all those iOS benefits wouldn't apply on Android, and at the root of it, Google Maps still has superior data, so I don't see people on Android using Apple Maps, but rather tha opposite, would make them like Apple even less and not want to switch. In my opinion.

Re: Ask HN: Apple maps vs. Google maps today?

#59

Post by YouKnowBetter »

I drive a lot in Europe, country to country. NOTHING beats Google maps to get me from A to B while avoiding whatever would slow me down. As much as I enjoy particular features of Apple Maps (Better indicators of particular highway splits), it is just lousy at having a clue what is up ahead.

Re: Ask HN: Apple maps vs. Google maps today?

#60

Post by hamuraijack »

I use Apple Maps for 99% of my needs. I only use it as a driving aid and don't really care about cartographic accuracy. I prefer the directions Apple Maps give since they seem to use less complex routes. I really dislike how Google Maps will use tiny side roads that are impossible to find and exit, just because it's 1 minute faster. Most of the time, I lose that benefit because those side roads are not easy to navigate.
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