Apple’s 3D Navigation in Apple Maps Makes Google Maps and Waze Feel Outdated

Not at all, and the large userbase behind apps like Waze are just the living proof in this regard. Also owned by Google, Waze is an application that has millions of users all over the world, all thanks to the crowdsourcing engine that makes it incredibly accurate.

Google, however, isn’t alone in this business, and several other companies are also investing big in navigation apps that are supposed to compete directly against Google Maps.

Apple is one of the largest tech giants with such a goal in mind, as its very own Apple Maps is first and foremost meant to serve as a native alternative to Google’s offering.

In theory, Apple Maps has always been a worthy navigation app, but in practice, such a thing was mostly valid for those living in the United States. The non-U.S. coverage of Apple Maps still leaves a lot to be desired, and the overhaul the company announced last year is still yet to reach the majority of international markets.

But this doesn’t necessarily mean Apple has given up on its dream of competing against and, eventually, defeating Google Maps. The Cupertino-based iPhone maker keeps investing more time and resources into converting Apple Maps into the next-generation mapping software, and one of the features it launched recently certainly gets its much closer to this objective.

It’s the 3D navigation support, a feature that debuted with the release of iOS 15 in the fall and which is now available on CarPlay too.

At first glance, there’s no doubt that 3D maps don’t seem to be such a big deal. But once you try it, returning to the classic 2D navigation mode feels like you’re downgrading the experience behind the wheel quite substantially.

The screenshots that I’ve included in this article show just how much effort Apple has put into getting the 3D models right. And it doesn’t all come down to just buildings, as the company has tried to reproduce nearly everything in Apple Maps, with almost every little detail included in the app for certain locations in the United States.

What this means is that it’s incredibly easy for every driver out there not only to figure out where they are by just looking outside the window but also to know exactly which way to go based on the directions provided by Apple Maps. In other words, the 3D world surrounding you is also the 3D world you see on the screen in your car, and this makes the navigation experience brilliantly straightforward.

Unfortunately, there’s also the disappointing side of the story. Such capabilities continue to be exclusive to Apple Maps users in the United States and to be honest, it’s hard to imagine the Cupertino-based iPhone maker would manage to bring it to everybody out there in the next decade.

Building advanced 3D models with such accurate details takes a lot of effort, and rendering the entire world in 3D isn’t easy by any means. Not even for a company the size of Apple, so if you’re hoping to get similar features in a country other than the United States, you’d better not hold your breath for this to happen anytime soon.

The good news for Apple is that the 3D navigation support is the living proof the company has what it takes to build a truly powerful alternative to Google Maps. The only thing that’s left is for the iPhone maker to figure out how to use these resources more effectively, as fighting against Google Maps doesn’t just come down to a single region.