Apple has finally announced the redesigned Apple Maps experience, but for the time being, only users in the United States can give it a try. The Cupertino-based tech giant, however, says the European launch will take place later this year.
Apple Maps comes with a new design that makes navigating from point A to point B more straightforward, and this is quite a big improvement for Apple overall, especially as the company has been struggling for years to compete against Google Maps.
There are lots of new features in this release, including a major update for Look Around, the Google Street View alternative that provides street-level imagery.
Apple has specifically focused on high-resolution 3D photography to power this visual facelift, but for the time being, such content is only available for a handful of locations like New York City, the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Houston and Oahu.
Apple Maps Collections is a new feature that allows users to group points of interest, such as restaurants, places they want to visit, and shops, in one place and then share them with friends.
The real-time transit feature has also been updated with transit schedules, live departure and arrival times, as well as the location of a bus or train. In addition to San Francisco Bay Area, Washington D.C., New York, and Los Angeles, this feature also becomes available in Miami today.
The indoor maps have also been improved, with more airports and malls covered in the update. The ETA sharing now boasts capabilities to update your contacts with revised estimates when delays are recorded.
Apple hasn’t provided any specifics as to when this new Apple Maps experience is projected to launch in Europe, but this is expected to happen later this year, possibly after the WWDC conference in June.
The redesigned Apple Maps is available on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch, but also in the car with CarPlay.
There are lots of new features in this release, including a major update for Look Around, the Google Street View alternative that provides street-level imagery.
Apple has specifically focused on high-resolution 3D photography to power this visual facelift, but for the time being, such content is only available for a handful of locations like New York City, the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Houston and Oahu.
Apple Maps Collections is a new feature that allows users to group points of interest, such as restaurants, places they want to visit, and shops, in one place and then share them with friends.
The real-time transit feature has also been updated with transit schedules, live departure and arrival times, as well as the location of a bus or train. In addition to San Francisco Bay Area, Washington D.C., New York, and Los Angeles, this feature also becomes available in Miami today.
The indoor maps have also been improved, with more airports and malls covered in the update. The ETA sharing now boasts capabilities to update your contacts with revised estimates when delays are recorded.
Apple hasn’t provided any specifics as to when this new Apple Maps experience is projected to launch in Europe, but this is expected to happen later this year, possibly after the WWDC conference in June.
The redesigned Apple Maps is available on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch, but also in the car with CarPlay.