Apple Maps, Apple’s navigation application, has been years behind Google Maps, but the latest changes that Cupertino-based company has brought to its app throughout 2018 are making Apple Maps more similar to Google Maps than ever.
The cartographer and former Apple employee Justin O’Beirne has been following the evolution of the two before-mentioned navigation applications and compared them to reveal how Apple Maps updated to recover the gap between it and Google Maps, probably the best navigation app in the world. At first glance, the main novelty is the introduction of more green areas what may seem an insignificant detail, but it involves a considerable amount of new data, too.
The Apple Maps application was launched in 2012, but since Google started to focus more on its Android system, the giant Internet company also centered more on the developing of its own Google Maps navigation application. Steve Jobs accused Google of plagiarism and decided to reduce, as much as possible, his company’s dependence on Google, so Apple began to work on his own mapping software, appearing for the first time as Apple Maps in iOS 6.
Apple Maps Updates Help It Get Closer To Google Maps, The Best Navigation App At The Moment
While until now the application had used third-party mapping data, now Apple will use its own infrastructure to turn Apple Maps into a stand-alone application.
After hard work, we begin to see the changes in Apple Maps, as Apple’s navigation system is now enjoying many updates. Justin O’Beirne assures that after four years of work, Apple’s mapping data cover 3.1% of the land surface of the United States and the main upgrade in Apple Maps is the mapping of large vegetation areas across the US.
In addition to detailing the largest green areas in the US, Apple continues to improve urban centers including streets, buildings, parks, among others. If the Apple Maps keeps on going on the same track, Apple might finally compete with Google Maps which, for the time being, is the best navigation app worldwide.
