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Tech Wednesday, November 21st 2012 at 8:45 am

Nokia Does the Impossible, Makes an iOS Maps App Worse than Apple Maps

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We thought Apple Maps was the bottom of the barrel in terms of iOS navigation, but Nokia just proved how low the bar can go with the release of Here Maps for Apple iOS. The new software manages to be more buggy and less reliable than Apple’s own Maps app, which is really saying something. For anyone hoping a better solution to the whole maps debacle would come along, Nokia’s Here Maps is not that knight in shining armor.

After Wired‘s review of the new Here Maps app called it a “buggy mess,” we had to see for ourselves if it could really be any worse than Apple Maps. After downloading Here Apps and attempting to use it for directions, we immediately got lost. It really is that terrible.

The clean look of Apple Maps at least makes you think it’s supposed to work, but the fuzzy, out-of-focus graphics and slow load times of Here Maps doesn’t instill us with any confidence that it knows where we want to go, or how to get there, or even where it currently resides. After we put in a location, it took a good long while to load our destination, or any of the map around it. We spent a lot of time looking at this screen:

Besides existentially assuring the user that they are “here,” this screen isn’t incredibly helpful.

Moving through features is difficult and not at all intuitive. Once you have a route loaded for directions, it’s hard to navigate your way back to a regular map view, or to cancel or pause the navigation. There are turn-by-turn alerts, but only for walking, and they’re loud. We tried loading a walking route with the turn-by-turn navigation a few times, and every time the voice started at around 90% total volume. Even when we muted the volume before beginning, the app defaulted back to being far too loud.

Someone had to try to fill the roll of a functional map in iOS, and while we appreciate Nokia’s effort, Here Maps just doesn’t cut it.

(via Wired)

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  • Roby

    When will people finally get bored with the iPhone?
    Just get a Nokia phone, the 920 has so much more to offer and the navigation works perfectly, even in countries you probably never heard of.
    FYI: In apple maps my hometown is located in a forest -.-

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/James-Burn/758205400 James Burn

    used my new nexus 7 for navigation recently, which was fine until it started bugging me to update to update the OS while i was trying to see where the fuck i was going… really not helpful

  • Idlethoughts

    No need to make a sales pitch for your brand, I’m sure the constant commercials done by all the various phones have already more than informed every phone user of their alternatives. If people are sticking with iPhones there are probably reasons they like them more than the others.

  • Jack Bond

    Not sure why everyone hates Apple Maps so far. Aside from the compass frequently pointing the wrong direction, Apple maps has never steered me wrong. You should see the GPS they built into my sister’s car. Now that’s crap. It took us to the other side of town from where we wanted to be. Apple maps saved the day.

  • Last_Decade_IOS

    That’s to bad for apple users, A $800 phone and still no working maps?.. Nokia must not be willing to offer Nokia Drive or other updated services.. No other choice for iphone users, either get a droid or a windows phone..

  • http://geekosystem.com/ Glen Tickle

    I’m pretty bored with my iPhone, actually. I have the 4, but wasn’t impressed with the improvements from the 4S or 5, so I’m jumping ship. Will likely get the Note 2 in the near future.

  • http://geekosystem.com/ Glen Tickle

    The only time I’ve had a real issue with Apple Maps was actually when I came in to interview for this job. I put the address in and it showed up something like 40 blocks north of where the office really is. Other than that it’s all been minor things like the compass issue you mentioned, or the maps being oriented at weird angles.

  • http://geekosystem.com/ Glen Tickle

    Besides that, how’s the nexus? It’s on my short list of possible replacement phones.

  • http://www.geckoandfly.com/ Ngan Tengyuen

    they are all perfectionist. not like there are no alternatives, they just love to complain