July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Tickets On Sale Now

Finnish phone maker Nokia has released its “Here” maps app for iOS, and while it might be more helpful than Apple Maps in some regards, we’re still holding out hope that Google Maps will arrive soon.

Nokia announced that its Here Maps for iOS about a week ago. The app offers public transportation info, voice-guided walking directions, and the ability to create personal maps. Here also offers maps that you can download and later access in offline mode.

Unfortunately, through a bit a testing, Here maps aren’t that impressive and don’t appear to be much better than Apple Maps except for offering public transportation directions inside the app. One thing that knocks down a lot of points in my book is the app’s sluggish performance. Zooming in on an area sometimes takes seconds to register even over a decent Wi-Fi connection. Additionally, compared to Apple and Google’s offering, Here Maps look bland and do not offer differentiate streets and various landmarks with enough coloring.

Thankfully Google Maps should be on the way soon as long as Apple approves the app. If Apple does approve, we expect Google Maps to be back on iOS before the end of the year.

If you so choose, you can download Nokia Maps in the iOS App Store now.

Photo credit: Nokia

July 9-10, 2013
San Francisco, CA

Tickets On Sale Now

With its smartphone sales sluggish, Nokia is turning elsewhere in an effort to make fans: maps.

At at event in California today, the company announced that it’s bringing Here, its new maps platform, to iOS, FireFox OS, and Android (in the form of an API).

Built for urban use, Here will offer features like voice-guided walking directions, public transportation info, and personal map creation. Nokia is making a big push for offline use as well: Users can download maps of specific areas and access them even when they’re without an Internet conneciton.

Here’s 3D map data comes courtesy of Earthmine, which Nokia has acquired for an undisclosed sum. While the 3D mapping company gives Nokia a direct competitor to Google Street View, it’s not a stretch to say that Nokia’s in no place to be spending lots of money. So let’s hope the investment pays off.

Nokia’s announcement comes during an interesting time for the iOS maps ecosystem. With Google Maps still absent and Apple still making vital improvements to its own Maps app, Nokia has a significant chance to carve off some of the iOS maps market for itself.

Of course, creating an iOS app means Nokia’s going to need to get Here approved by Apple, which Nokia expects to happen within the next few weeks.

Photo:  Flickr/David R Gilson