I'm going to take this eleventeenth maps-based article as an opportunity to just come right out and say it:

I don't have a problem with the Maps app. It's good enough for me.

Does anyone have a list of the basic voice commands for the new Maps app. I only used it once but it took a few tries to get Siri ready to go. I can't remember exactly what I finally said that made sense to her. For example what is the best way to initiate a rerouting? I know she is supposed to understand natural language but quite often all she is interested in doing is finding 14 restaurants, 13 of which are near you. That girl likes to eat.

I'm going on record and agreeing with atashi. Not only don't I have a problem with the new Maps app, I like it better than Google maps. Its much more responsive on my phone, it's just as accurate in that areas in which I travel, and I find the flyover feature impressive. Google maps did not work for my transit options anyway, and I found Street View to mostly be a weirdly creepy gimmick.

So, "haters gonna hate", and everyone seems to love piling onto the "beat-up Apple" bandwagon, but I think the maps program is pretty good.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mstone 

Does anyone have a list of the basic voice commands for the new Maps app. I only used it once but it took a few tries to get Siri ready to go. I can't remember exactly what I finally said that made sense to her. For example what is the best way to initiate a rerouting? I know she is supposed to understand natural language but quite often all she is interested in doing is finding 14 restaurants, 13 of which are near you. That girl likes to eat.

I don't know if this helps but here's a good starting point for using Siri;

http://www.tuaw.com/2012/09/14/what-can-you-say-to-siri-in-ios-6/

Granted, I live in Metro Atlanta, but the new Maps--as compared to the old Maps app--works identically for me.  I hardly used street view before.  Turn by turn directions with Siri integration has replaced Waze for GPS features. 

@mstone: I said "give me directions to 123 main street, atlanta georgia."  Siri understood and transferred me to Maps for navigation.  No fuss, no muss.

I have to say I like the maps program. Google maps has led me astray a time or two so whoopee. I suspect most users will find it adequate for teir needs. There just seem to be a lot of people looking for any flaw they can find in the map app while ignoring the same flaws in Google maps.

Anyway, that is my opinion and I don't mind offering it. ;-)

I'd like to see a comparison between phone-based navigation and a dedicated GPS like the latest Garmins.

I think the key is the default app on iOS. The vast majority of people won't download a 3rd party app to replace maps so they'll just use the default one. I think that Maps is fine. Not great but okay and hopefully going to get better and more information quickly.

I've found it works really well in offline mode (which you state it doesn't do well in the top right box of the comparison chart with Google). I have a limited data plan so I often turn off cellular data when I'm out until I need it. And if you load up maps while on Wifi, it works well for zooming in and panning around when there's no network connection. Obviously you can't search for something else without a network connection or a new route, but you can follow an existing route that you set up previously via Wifi.

I too, like the new Maps better than Google's for navigation. It hasn't let me down yet. I also have Navigon though I haven't had to use it (Use it when abroad), as well as Waze which I sometimes consult to double check. But Google was better for finding POI's, like my fave coffee shops.

This is a good, if biased, article... if you live in San Francisco.

The conclusions drawn aren't valid for the rest of the world though, especially outside of the US.