5 ms·

I've been recently trying out the new Apple maps' turn by turn navigation. Some of the directions are almost human like - "Take a left at next traffic light" Mu

by websap 5y ago

I've been recently trying out the new Apple maps' turn by turn navigation. Some of the directions are almost human like - "Take a left at next traffic light" Must say makes driving directions easier to follow compared to take a left on X street, when I can't even see what X street is at night.

mattlondon 5y ago
Doesn't Google maps do this too? At least in the UK I can hear "at the roundabout, take the Xth exit" echoing in my head right now. Can't remember about traffic lights. It does mention road names though which is kinda silly... If I knew the roads well enough to know what they are called I'd not need directions!
- websap 5y ago
  Definitely doesn't do it for traffic lights in the US.
- Rebelgecko 5y ago
  Google Maps also uses landmarks, eg "turn right after the GameStop". AFAIK those aren't sponsored
  - websap 5y ago
    Problem is that when I'm driving I'm not paying attention to businesses around me. I've gotten a direction once like take left at Starbucks, how far is the starbucks away, is it the next left or the one after that? Now I need to glance for a Starbucks while I'm driving?
LindyTalker 5y ago
I have noticed this as well. Much easier too when it's saying which lane to be in when you're exiting a highway
- jiveturkey 5y ago
  The lane by lane is more harm than help IMHO. You often get an instruction like "use the left 2 lanes". But where you are when the instruction is given, the leftmost lane might be a forced early left turn. If you're unfamiliar with the location, this requires a lot of extra cognitive load, vs simply not giving that specificity at all. As well, traffic conditions change rapidly and the lane by lane doesn't account for that. In some easier situations, it's great, but it's a negative in more complex situations.
  - sixstringtheory 5y ago
    I’ve found their reporting mechanism for incorrect directions to be very easy to use and that they are responsive to the suggestions. Please leave a marker for the next poor soul who’d get snared in that trap!
mshockwave 5y ago
finally, I'm not the only one feeling some of the street signs are barely visible at night.
larrik 5y ago
It seems great, and then on a rainy night while I'm running late it brought me to the wrong place... It was only about 200 yards up the road, but it brought me to someone's house, and had me turn in the wrong direction. So, I was even later...
- websap 5y ago
  200 yards = 182 meters. This definitely seems like an issue, hope you had the chance to report it. My expectation from maps is generally a resolution of about 10m.
kstrauser 5y ago
That, and "go through this traffic light and turn left at the next one" is brilliant.

by websap 5y ago

mattlondon 5y ago

Doesn't Google maps do this too? At least in the UK I can hear "at the roundabout, take the Xth exit" echoing in my head right now. Can't remember about traffic lights. It does mention road names though which is kinda silly... If I knew the roads well enough to know what they are called I'd not need directions!

websap 5y ago
Definitely doesn't do it for traffic lights in the US.
Rebelgecko 5y ago
Google Maps also uses landmarks, eg "turn right after the GameStop". AFAIK those aren't sponsored
- websap 5y ago
  Problem is that when I'm driving I'm not paying attention to businesses around me. I've gotten a direction once like take left at Starbucks, how far is the starbucks away, is it the next left or the one after that? Now I need to glance for a Starbucks while I'm driving?

LindyTalker 5y ago

I have noticed this as well. Much easier too when it's saying which lane to be in when you're exiting a highway

jiveturkey 5y ago
The lane by lane is more harm than help IMHO. You often get an instruction like "use the left 2 lanes". But where you are when the instruction is given, the leftmost lane might be a forced early left turn. If you're unfamiliar with the location, this requires a lot of extra cognitive load, vs simply not giving that specificity at all. As well, traffic conditions change rapidly and the lane by lane doesn't account for that. In some easier situations, it's great, but it's a negative in more complex situations.
- sixstringtheory 5y ago
  I’ve found their reporting mechanism for incorrect directions to be very easy to use and that they are responsive to the suggestions. Please leave a marker for the next poor soul who’d get snared in that trap!

mshockwave 5y ago

finally, I'm not the only one feeling some of the street signs are barely visible at night.

larrik 5y ago

It seems great, and then on a rainy night while I'm running late it brought me to the wrong place... It was only about 200 yards up the road, but it brought me to someone's house, and had me turn in the wrong direction. So, I was even later...

websap 5y ago
200 yards = 182 meters. This definitely seems like an issue, hope you had the chance to report it. My expectation from maps is generally a resolution of about 10m.

kstrauser 5y ago

That, and "go through this traffic light and turn left at the next one" is brilliant.