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Either you have a fleet of trucks or you are overestimating how much Android's navigation is saving you. When my GPS broke down, I didn't start using my phone,

Either you have a fleet of trucks or you are overestimating how much Android's navigation is saving you. When my GPS broke down, I didn't start using my phone, I just bought another GPS for 99 euro. (And funny thing is the old one has just some loose wires and could be fixed a few months later by an electrician.)

sohn 14y ago
We're really happy for you, you have so much money you can afford to waste it. But normal people doesn't.
stanleydrew 14y ago
It seems awfully strange to nit pick about the savings. So what if it's saving him only £50 per year or whatever? Can we agree that it's nonzero? Ok great. Now we can move on to addressing the meat of the comment. Which is that iOS users have been denied the luxury of excellent and free turn-by-turn navigation available on Android, and this maps update does nothing to address that.
- fierarul 14y ago
  To me, using navigation on the phone would be more of a convenience than a matter of savings. The 99 euro GPS I was talking about was the cheapest in store and it even had Traffic Message Channel (TMC), something the older one didn't. Also, the GPS would get super hot in the windshield -- I would have never used my phone instead! Anyhow, all that out of the way, I guess you are right that turn by turn would be nice on iOS.
- pcl 14y ago
  I've always assumed that iOS doesn't do live turn-by-turn directions in their native maps app in part because of licensing terms encumbering the routing data. Moving away from Google to their own algorithms (or to direct deals with other data providers) could free them of those terms. If so, I'd be surprised if they didn't add turn-by-turn directions to the app. Of course, they'd undercut all the paid turn-by-turn apps, but they haven't been shy about that sort of thing in the past.
chrisrhoden 14y ago
I think you're forgetting how much a device of similar capability to the Android navigation cost before it was free on most smartphones. And subscription costs. Your inexpensive GPS unit was put on perpetual clearance by the app you're disparaging.
- fierarul 14y ago
  I am glad that free mobile apps are putting a cap on GPS makers' profits! But since a mobile app depends on a mobile data plan I could never use it when I need the GPS the most: when I'm abroad. Within the US I guess it would make sense to start using you phone and your data plan as a GPS, but within EU it would get really expensive really fast. That's why a dedicated GPS unit seemed to me like a better idea.
  - chrisrhoden 14y ago
    My point is that the fact that the app exists is the reason you didn't pay 250 euro plus 99 euro every year for the privilege of getting updated maps for that unit.
  - MisterBastahrd 14y ago
    Google is doing with their Android platform what Microsoft did when it decided to bundle IE with Windows. Funny how MS got blasted by every geek in existence back then, but nowadays it's so commonplace that companies are lauded for it.
    - chrisrhoden 14y ago
      I am not sure I understand - Microsoft was blasted because it destroyed the commercial browser market by offering a superior product for free? No. Microsoft was blasted because you had no choice in the matter, even if you wanted to use a different browser than IE, there was no way to make anything but IE behave well with the rest of the OS.
deleted 14y ago
[deleted]
nobleach 14y ago
The genius in Android's system is not necessarily the navigation. It's the METHOD for performing the navigation. Google parses your email and texts for potential addresses that you can click to launch navigation. Every other GPS system, including the expensive Navigon package I bought for my iPhone ask you State? City? Street? Number? Oh how I'd love for someone to be able to text me their address while I'm driving and be able to click the link and be automatically routed. Google's upper hand is in integration. If I had a Tom Tom or a Garmin that could read my email or texts and then start navigating, I'd buy it.

sohn 14y ago

We're really happy for you, you have so much money you can afford to waste it. But normal people doesn't.

stanleydrew 14y ago

It seems awfully strange to nit pick about the savings. So what if it's saving him only £50 per year or whatever? Can we agree that it's nonzero? Ok great. Now we can move on to addressing the meat of the comment. Which is that iOS users have been denied the luxury of excellent and free turn-by-turn navigation available on Android, and this maps update does nothing to address that.

fierarul 14y ago
To me, using navigation on the phone would be more of a convenience than a matter of savings. The 99 euro GPS I was talking about was the cheapest in store and it even had Traffic Message Channel (TMC), something the older one didn't. Also, the GPS would get super hot in the windshield -- I would have never used my phone instead! Anyhow, all that out of the way, I guess you are right that turn by turn would be nice on iOS.
pcl 14y ago
I've always assumed that iOS doesn't do live turn-by-turn directions in their native maps app in part because of licensing terms encumbering the routing data. Moving away from Google to their own algorithms (or to direct deals with other data providers) could free them of those terms. If so, I'd be surprised if they didn't add turn-by-turn directions to the app. Of course, they'd undercut all the paid turn-by-turn apps, but they haven't been shy about that sort of thing in the past.

chrisrhoden 14y ago

I think you're forgetting how much a device of similar capability to the Android navigation cost before it was free on most smartphones. And subscription costs. Your inexpensive GPS unit was put on perpetual clearance by the app you're disparaging.

fierarul 14y ago
I am glad that free mobile apps are putting a cap on GPS makers' profits! But since a mobile app depends on a mobile data plan I could never use it when I need the GPS the most: when I'm abroad. Within the US I guess it would make sense to start using you phone and your data plan as a GPS, but within EU it would get really expensive really fast. That's why a dedicated GPS unit seemed to me like a better idea.
- chrisrhoden 14y ago
  My point is that the fact that the app exists is the reason you didn't pay 250 euro plus 99 euro every year for the privilege of getting updated maps for that unit.
- MisterBastahrd 14y ago
  Google is doing with their Android platform what Microsoft did when it decided to bundle IE with Windows. Funny how MS got blasted by every geek in existence back then, but nowadays it's so commonplace that companies are lauded for it.
  - chrisrhoden 14y ago
    I am not sure I understand - Microsoft was blasted because it destroyed the commercial browser market by offering a superior product for free? No. Microsoft was blasted because you had no choice in the matter, even if you wanted to use a different browser than IE, there was no way to make anything but IE behave well with the rest of the OS.

deleted 14y ago

[deleted]

nobleach 14y ago

The genius in Android's system is not necessarily the navigation. It's the METHOD for performing the navigation. Google parses your email and texts for potential addresses that you can click to launch navigation. Every other GPS system, including the expensive Navigon package I bought for my iPhone ask you State? City? Street? Number? Oh how I'd love for someone to be able to text me their address while I'm driving and be able to click the link and be automatically routed. Google's upper hand is in integration. If I had a Tom Tom or a Garmin that could read my email or texts and then start navigating, I'd buy it.