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Apple is officially done rebuilding its maps in the US:
To say Apple Maps stumbled out of the gate is putting it mildly; it quickly became an internetpunchline when it launched in 2012, and left the company with the unenviable job of fixing it. Since then, Apple has been rebuilding the most fundamental part of the experience -- the base maps themselves -- and today the company says it's finally done. Well, in the United States, anyway.
Getting to this point was no small feat. It's been nearly a year and a half since Apple announced its plans, but even before that, a fleet of LIDAR-equipped vans was criss-crossing the United States to capture as much detailed location data as possible. To gather even more geographical context, Apple also captured map data from the air, though it's not clear how many planes the company employed for this work. While Apple wouldn't confirm any increases in budget or staff to make all of this possible, the company's investment in the project seems significant, and there's still more to come. The big push to re-map the United States is now officially done, but Apple has earmarked some of its LIDAR vans for maintenance runs -- that is, they'll continue to roam on roads to make sure that hard-won data remains up to date.
The end result is a more accurate set of maps that you might have already been looking at -- the company has been pushing them live around the country for at least the past six months. There are a few telltale signs to look out for if you're not sure: Coastlines are more accurately represented, as are buildings like airports and malls. When we reviewed iOS 13, we also noticed more nuanced street-level data; there were more street labels on-screen compared to Google Maps, and more streets had traffic direction indicators. That might not sound like a big deal, but it's really helpful when trying to orient yourself when you're emerging from the subway.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Gaaark on Saturday February 01 2020, @02:31AM (6 children)
Imagine that all that money and time and effort that Apple and Google put into their separate mapping systems had instead gone into openmaps or such.
All that Energy/gas/diesel/hybrid could have been split between them with both of them benefitting.....
.... imagine how smart that would have been: save money, save the environment, work together for mutual benefit.
Instead, more corporate stupidity.
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 3, Interesting) by barbara hudson on Saturday February 01 2020, @02:39AM
SoylentNews is social media. Says so right in the slogan. Soylentnews is people, not tech.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 01 2020, @03:41AM
Imagine if Apple bought data from Tesla -- who have map data from something like a half million cars with cameras on them. It's all being sent home to Tesla who use it internally, but I'm guessing Musk would part with it for the right price.
Sure you want Lidar for some areas, but to really cover the country a fleet of cameras & cars with GPS must be the cheap way to go.
(Score: 3, Funny) by JoeMerchant on Saturday February 01 2020, @04:03AM
Imagine no possessions... I wonder if you can...
Yoko Ono, just as unrealistic today as in 1971.
🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 1) by RandomFactor on Saturday February 01 2020, @07:54PM (1 child)
Google Maps Launch: 2005
Apple Maps Launch: 2012
I suspect both of these entities would rather burn cash than contribute to each other's bottom line regardless.
В «Правде» нет известий, в «Известиях» нет правды
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 01 2020, @07:58PM
apple should have just donated some resources to open street maps, but they can't do that because they are disgusting scum.
(Score: 2) by darkfeline on Saturday February 01 2020, @10:00PM
Imagine your rival company giving away the results of hundreds of millions of dollars in investments for free. I would definitely be waiting to drive my rivals out of business by taking advantage of their generous donations.
>mutual
That word doesn't mean what you think it means. Private companies are not a government funded by public money and beholden to enriching non-shareholders.
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