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Apple Made CarPlay So Much Better than Android Auto with Just One Maps Update

Apple has recently announced a major overhaul for its Apple Maps app, and it goes without saying that the most important new feature for drivers is the addition of traffic lights and stop signs.
Apple Maps on CarPlay with traffic lights and stop signs 1 photo
Photo: reddit user kevin12423
And starting this week, such content is available on CarPlay as well, provided that you use Apple Maps for navigation when getting behind the wheel.

There are good news and bad news about the release of this update on CarPlay, though.

First of all, the good news. With this update, Apple Maps finally becomes a mature navigation service, so at first glance, you should no longer feel the need to replace it with Google Maps. Of course, this is a subjective choice, but from a content perspective, there shouldn’t be much to complain about after updating Apple Maps.

The bad news concerns the limited availability of this update in CarPlay. Just like on iPhone, the traffic lights and stop signs are displayed on the maps only in the United States, as Apple is expected to release a similar update for Europe later this year.

Some users complain that not even all locations in the United States are covered for the time being, so I’m guessing the Cupertino-based tech giant uses a phased rollout, with more regions to get the updated maps in the coming weeks.

Additionally, it looks like the voice navigation powered by Siri also uses traffic lights and stop signs for more accurate instructions. For example, CarPlay now offers navigation directions like “take a left at the next stoplight,” with some people claiming that Siri can even use street names for turn-by-turn navigation on CarPlay.

Is there anything you can do to get traffic lights and stop signs in CarPlay if such content isn’t currently available for you? Not really, as Apple is currently pushing the update to devices in the U.S. in waves, with users in Europe to follow in the coming months, so your only option right now is to just wait for the new version to land on your iPhone.
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About the author: Bogdan Popa
Bogdan Popa profile photo

Bogdan keeps an eye on how technology is taking over the car world. His long-term goals are buying an 18-wheeler because he needs more space for his kid’s toys, and convincing Google and Apple that Android Auto and CarPlay deserve at least as much attention as their phones.
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