Photo: Bogdan Popa/autoevolution
Waze, Google Maps, Apple Maps, and all the other navigation apps out there are incredibly useful driving companions, as they offer turn-by-turn guidance, voice instructions, and everything else to get us to our destinations faster and more conveniently.
However, every user learns sooner or later that the tiniest error in their routing algorithms could send us to the middle of nowhere, and unless we follow road signs, we could end up in embarrassing, dangerous, and sometimes life-threatening situations.
It happened again in Malaysia, where a 32-year-old man visiting his brother in Sungai Petani left home at 1 AM. He jumped on his Honda RS motorcycle and launched Waze to find a route back home. However, it didn't take long until he got lost, eventually determining that the navigation app directed him to a rubber and oil palm plantation.
He wanted to use Waze to return to his brother's house, but the application couldn't help him, as the man eventually got some 10 kilometers away from the main road.
Unfortunately, the man couldn't even call the emergency services, as he got lost in a place with no cellular signal. He tried to find an exit but failed, with the poor network coverage making it impossible to call for help.
After six hours of searching for a cellular signal, he managed to contact the Fire and Rescue Department, who found the man one hour later on the plantation. He told them he was surrounded by wild animals and believed a predator chased him, as he couldn't see anything while walking on the muddy and gravel paths.
The man wasn't injured, but the first responders told the local media that he was "trembling and tearful."
Waze does not support offline maps, so if an Internet connection is no longer available, the application cannot search for alternative routes if you miss a turn. Waze can continue navigation on a current route when the Internet connection drops, but once it goes offline, the app can't update traffic information and look for other routes.
Google Maps and Apple Maps come with offline navigation, but users must download offline maps before they start driving. The data is stored on the mobile device, and the application doesn't need an Internet connection to look for other routes and continue navigation. It uses the GPS connection to determine your location, albeit once it goes offline, real-time traffic information is no longer available.
Regardless of the features, users must always pay attention to road signs, as these applications can't be up-to-date with what happens in traffic. This is why authorities worldwide have already erected signs to tell people to look for street signs rather than trust navigation apps, as they could be sent on wrong routes.
It happened again in Malaysia, where a 32-year-old man visiting his brother in Sungai Petani left home at 1 AM. He jumped on his Honda RS motorcycle and launched Waze to find a route back home. However, it didn't take long until he got lost, eventually determining that the navigation app directed him to a rubber and oil palm plantation.
He wanted to use Waze to return to his brother's house, but the application couldn't help him, as the man eventually got some 10 kilometers away from the main road.
Unfortunately, the man couldn't even call the emergency services, as he got lost in a place with no cellular signal. He tried to find an exit but failed, with the poor network coverage making it impossible to call for help.
After six hours of searching for a cellular signal, he managed to contact the Fire and Rescue Department, who found the man one hour later on the plantation. He told them he was surrounded by wild animals and believed a predator chased him, as he couldn't see anything while walking on the muddy and gravel paths.
The man wasn't injured, but the first responders told the local media that he was "trembling and tearful."
Waze does not support offline maps, so if an Internet connection is no longer available, the application cannot search for alternative routes if you miss a turn. Waze can continue navigation on a current route when the Internet connection drops, but once it goes offline, the app can't update traffic information and look for other routes.
Google Maps and Apple Maps come with offline navigation, but users must download offline maps before they start driving. The data is stored on the mobile device, and the application doesn't need an Internet connection to look for other routes and continue navigation. It uses the GPS connection to determine your location, albeit once it goes offline, real-time traffic information is no longer available.
Regardless of the features, users must always pay attention to road signs, as these applications can't be up-to-date with what happens in traffic. This is why authorities worldwide have already erected signs to tell people to look for street signs rather than trust navigation apps, as they could be sent on wrong routes.
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