Apple Quietly Gives More Google Maps Users a Reason to Jump Ship

The Detailed City Experience, officially announced several years ago but still rolling out gradually today, is making good progress, bringing a plethora of new features to users across the world.

Google Maps has long been the preferred Apple Maps alternative, especially outside the United States. This makes perfect sense, as Apple Maps has offered the majority of its features to users in the parent company's home market almost exclusively.

As such, many people switched to Google Maps because of the lack of features in Apple Maps, including essential capabilities such as offline maps and satellite navigation (as a matter of fact, offline maps are already on their way to users, with the upcoming iOS 17 to bring this feature to every iPhone XS and newer).

In the meantime, Apple is working around the clock on bringing the new-generation Apple Maps to more people out there. Certainly, more detailed maps, improved navigation, and plenty of new features sound very compelling, so Google Maps users would get a new reason to jump ship and try out Apple Maps.

This is precisely what's happening these days in three more regions. The iPhone maker has quietly completed the public testing of the new maps in Hong Kong, Slovakia, and Taiwan, so as of this month, users in these countries received access to the new Apple Maps.

In other words, if you have an iPhone and want to use the revamped Apple Maps in one of these three countries, you should be able to do so without participating in the public testing program or anything like that. The stable rollout started on June 16, so the new maps are already available for everybody.

The difference between the old and the new maps is huge. Apple Maps now offers impressive details, with street names, crosswalks, sidewalks, and everything else you expect to find in a modern mapping platform.

The Detailed City Experience

If you wonder why the Apple Maps Detailed City Experience is such a big deal, it all comes down to how the iPhone maker overhauled its maps.

The rollout started in 2021 as part of iOS 15, and since then, the company has been working constantly on improving the content available for users.

In addition to more accurate maps, the Detailed City Experience comes with an incredible focus on details, from road markings and trees to sidewalks, crosswalks, and buildings. Apple Maps now accurately display commercial districts, road markings, and public transit routes.

The navigation experience has received a massive refresh as well, as Apple now wants to make it easier for users to go from where they are to where they want to be. Apple Maps displays the location of traffic lights and stop signs, making the road more predictable. The 3D view in navigation, available on iPhone and CarPlay, creates a more realistic view of each road, eventually making it easier for drivers to figure out which way they need to go to follow the suggested route.

The only major shortcoming is the release pace. Apple uses a phased rollout model for the Detailed City Experience, so users out there receive the new maps in stages. The company did not provide a timeline for this rollout, so it's impossible to tell when it plans to complete the update to the new maps. However, with the testing being expanded to more regions, it's typically just a matter of months until new countries receive the DCE.

Other Apple Maps features

Apple has accelerated the development of new Apple Maps features, presumably as the work on the Apple Car makes good progress.

The iPhone maker is building an electric vehicle that could see daylight as soon as 2025. Apple Maps is expected to play an integral role in the experience behind the wheel, especially as Apple is aiming for full self-driving capabilities by the end of the decade.

In the meantime, however, Apple Maps is also getting features that should have been there from the very beginning. For example, the next big iOS update will include offline map support in Apple Maps, allowing users to continue navigation without the need for an Internet connection. Right now, you can't use Apple Maps in offline mode, so whenever you go to a remote area with no cellular signal, the application can't offer route guidance.

Offline maps will be included in the final version of iOS 17 for production devices, with the rollout projected to kick off in September. The testing build is already available for developers, and Apple is expected to release a public beta in the coming weeks. The next iOS software update will only be offered to the iPhone XS and newer, so older devices will no longer get offline maps in Apple Maps.