Whether iPhone owners care or not, Google Maps will no longer be part of Apple’s mobile core when iOS 6 hits in the fall. Really,
it was only a matter of time before Apple offered its own maps after we
learned the company swooped up Placebase, C3 Technologies and Poly9.
We’re going to take a look at Apple’s new Maps compared to Google Maps and Bing Maps on the
iPhone only so
it’s a somewhat level playing field. Yes, Bing Maps is at a big
disadvantage because we’re looking at it through the browser, but we
wanted to include it as a wildcard anyway. And no, this wasn’t meant to
be an iOS against Android debate.
On that note, we don’t expect Apple Maps to be as comprehensive or as
well executed as Google Maps seeing as it’s in the early stages. What
it does promise to offer when it’s out of beta, however, is traffic
view, 3D rendering, integrated Yelp, 100 million business listings,
turn-by-turn navigation, Flyover and Siri-integration.
We’re merely looking at the most basic features of each respective
maps. Apple must be pretty confident it can offer something great,
otherwise it would never have ditched Google in the first place,
especially after the search giant’s recent maps event. Let’s take an early look, with Apple on the left, Google in the middle and Bing (in the browser) on the right.
Standard View
Maps are all about information, and standard view is the cleanest and
simplest way to digest what’s being presented. On looks alone, my gut
reaction is to favor Google Maps, which is the easiest to read and shows
the most information without being too cluttered. Apple’s Maps
obviously most closely resembles Google’s offering on the iPhone, but
small streets aren’t labeled (yet) and main streets aren’t color coded
like they are in Google Maps. Bing Maps in the browser is similar to
Apple’s; unlabeled and difficult to see side streets, and there isn’t
any color coding… save for major highways. What I do like about Apple’s
layout, however, is the fact that there isn’t a navigation bar on the
bottom. The corner page is already peeled back slightly to indicate
another options menu, and the Directions button has been moved to the
top left.
Traffic
Well here’s some conflicting information for you. Apple shows no
traffic, Google shows some, while Bing is telling us that the streets of
San Francisco are relatively clear. Apple said it’s going to rely on
users to determine traffic, and since iOS 6 is in beta right now, the
traffic results aren’t surprising. (Before anyone asks, yes, I did
remember to “check” the traffic box on Apple Maps.) This will obviously
change once iOS 6 hits in the fall, but as of now, we wouldn’t even
consider using Apple Maps for gridlock info.
Hybrid View
Hybrid view sure looks cool, but is it something people consistently
use? It’s fun to browse, but for me it’s just blurred chaos. Either way,
the three look very similar. Apple Maps is right now the cleanest, but
it displays the least information, just as it did with Standard View. We
would expect that in the future Apple will add more information when
zoomed in, otherwise it would be pretty frustrating to navigate cities
and neighborhoods.
Directions
The three different options all chose the same route from one
Starbucks to another (although the distances don’t match up). Because we
compared Bing in the browser, we weren’t able to change routes, which
can be annoying if there’s traffic. Speaking of traffic, Apple Maps will
give you turn-by-turn navigation and offer alternative routes if your
current path is congested. All three, though, work great on the iPhone,
but right now we’d give Apple the slight edge because it offers
turn-by-turn. Of course, Google Maps for Android has had this for a
while, but we’re talking strictly about the iPhone here.
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