TiPb loves answering your emails, but we also love sharing our answers with the community in hopes that more people will benefit, and even better answers will present themselves (hey, that’s why we have them forums!). Today’s question comes from Chris:
“Why doesn’t the iPhone have real GPS?! Even the [redacted] Samsung Instinct has turn by turn! Why does Apple add [redacted] like street view [but] not the things users really want?”
TiPb answers after the break!
Dieter’s been saying for a long time that Google hearts the iPhone — and why wouldn’t it, it delivers an incredible amount of mobile eyeballs for advertising. We’ve also said that the ultimate edge the iPhone enjoys over Android is that while Google produces great service for both Android and the iPhone, Apple only produces for the iPhone. The iPhone gets the best of both worlds. Latest case in point, iPhoneYap (via Apple Insider) has posted extensive screenshots of the new Google Maps 2.2, and it looks like we’re getting:
Sampling of images after the jump, see the full gallery at iPhoneYap
The iPhone Map App, which leverages Google’s mapping services, became location aware with 1.1.3, and GPS enabled with the iPhone 3G and 2.0.
Basically, it superimposes a blue circle around the area it believes you’re located. More confident the belief, smaller the circle. GPS lock, and a blue dot shows up. Only problem? Sometimes there’s not dot and Google’s lack of confidence results in a pretty huge circle. Well, last week Google’s blog announced some improvements:
With today’s launch, your location estimate will be centered closer to your true location, and we have also improved the calculation of just how good our estimate is. When we originally launched the “blue circle” on Google Maps for mobile, the circle usually stayed the same size no matter if you were in downtown Manhattan or rural Iowa. Now, the next time you’re using Google Maps in downtown Manhattan, expect to see a much smaller circle that’s also far more accurate. Conversely, when you’re in a lightly populated area like rural Iowa, expect to see a much larger circle which also happens to be centered closer to your true location.
The best news? No update required. Anything tapping the Google force for location — including the iPhone, benefits automatically! Enjoy!
We agree with Crackberry Kevin getting this and WMExperts blogging about it, and you know how crazy that makes us…
Why so? Google is playing a cagy game of supplying services to all major platforms while simultaneously deploying their own smartphone OS with Android, browser with Chrome, and likely in the labs, computing OS with gLinux. Gotta keep the existing big players happy; gotta have their own backups in place just in case same big players get unhappy (or unruly). Smart strategy, equal parts Microsoft and Apple.
And it will benefit iPhone users in the short term, perhaps more than any other platform base. See, we already get helpful Google web services, and maybe some Chrome innovation will filter down to WebKit and get picked up for MobileSafari (minus the troubling security and privacy issues, of course). But here’s the thing: The iPhone didn’t get location aware Google Maps until firmware 1.1.3 was shown off at Macworld 2008, which if memory serves was after other smartphone platforms announced it (and after people complained about the iPhone not having it). Heck, other smartphones had Google Maps before there was an iPhone. But their UE (User Experience) wasn’t very good. Early soviet design comes to mind.
In his joint talk with Bill Gates at D All Things Digital, Steve Jobs talked about the iPhone Maps App, and how it “blew away” every other maps app. And he was right. If you haven’t watched the video above, watch it. Forget Street-View and look at the UE. Yes, Blackberry users really have to experience that only a daily — or hourly — basis. Then tap open Google Maps on the iPhone. Now imagine that with Street-View carefully, expertly — beautifully integrated, because that’s likely the next addition to that particular app.
Are we jealous? For now, you bet. But we’re also grateful to our Crackberrian and WinMobile friends for putting up with that kludge until Apple wraps it up the way it’s meant to be wrapped — in just the precisely proper Jobs’-approved shade of gray, no doubt.
(That is, unless they keep the good stuff for Android from now on…)
UPDATE: Our ace commenters point out this is something Google has been pushing for a while now, pre-2.1, although it may be slowly moving across the US and hasn’t been getting tons of attention everywhere yet. As the effect is likely part of the image downloads, Google can probably push new images any time they like, and not have it bound to any specific point release, so that makes the kind of sense that does. Still, pretty awesome feature!
Original post:
Eagle-eyed reader Gregory just sent this in and as Neo would surely say — WHOA!
Looks like for San Francisco, which is pretty much home turf for both Google and Apple, the built in iPhone Maps App now boasts 3D buildings! The renderings are in Map mode (Satellite and Hybrid modes have photographic buildings, after all!) and are pretty dang spiffy if you ask us.
Now, while I can see them if I search for San Fran, when I search for my hometown of Montreal, I get no such love. How about you and your city? Got 3D?
Thanks Gregory!
When Rene gave us a As the Turn-By-Turn Turns update yesterday, we got a very smart comment from somebody calling him/herself GoogleLicense:
TiPB ought to do some research on the why’s behind this and break the story since the iphone press seems to love reporting this topic.
It might be something like this: Apple licenses significant parts of their map stuff from Google. Google licenses significant parts of their map stuff from several other vendors. Each license has certain restrictions.
If you dig around in the bowels of Google’s developer site looking for info on required copyrights and license restrictions when using embeddable maps, you can get a lot of details of what is and isn’t allowed for what sets of data and who the original source is that is putting those restrictions…
Indeed, we know a good idea when we see it. After the break, a short history of map providers, their licenses, and why it seems like waiting for Turn-by-Turn directions within Google Maps on the iPhone isn’t a great idea.
Read on!
  
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The iPhone Blog merged with the Phone different site in May of 2008. Both sites were founded on a premise that comes one from one of Apple's old slogans: Think different. The iPhone Blog: for people who dare to phone different.
