Filed under: iPhone, App Review
YANA - Yet another navigation app (MapQuest Navigator)
If choice is a good thing, iPhone owners have a veritable bounty of navigation apps in all price ranges and features. MapQuest has now released their own navigation app, and frankly it's a mixed bag.Like the AT&T nav app, MapQuest Navigator [iTunes link] needs the internet for its data, so if you frequently drive where even the Edge network is a sometime visitor, forget using this app.
If you are more of an urban driver or stick to Interstates, the app has some promise.
Here are some of the touted features:
- Streamlined 3D Interface: Features voice-guided, turn-by-turn navigation that speaks directions and street names.
- Regular Data Updates: Search 16+ million points of interest and utilize up-to-date street maps.
- Full Route Corridor Download: Quick route re-calculation for missed turns as well provides continued service in areas of no cellular coverage.
- Traffic Incident Based Routing: U.S. routes are optimized to avoid traffic incidents that might delay your travel.
- A MapQuest Place Carousel: Easily displays locations for hotels, movie theaters, gas stations, and more with a single tap.
When you first start the program, you get a 2D overview. When you actually start driving, things change to 3D perspective maps. While the app advertises a big POI database, in my use it wasn't always great. Sitting near an IHOP didn't show it as a food destination on the map, even thought that IHOP has been there for years.
In general, the database was OK, but in navigating home it old me my house was on the right, when in fact it was on the left. I saw that same error in other destinations as well. The voice is clear, and the app provides real turn by turn spoken directions with text to speech so all streets are noted correctly by the voice.
On a simulated trip to Phoenix, the app identified traffic problems, which is good, and it would have routed me around any major tie-ups. GPS acquisition was speedy, and I didn't see any mapping errors. The app resumes after a phone call, and can use your contacts list to get an address.
You can get a 14 day trial for US$0.99 which is a good idea. After the trial it's $3.99 a month, three months for $9.99 and a year for $29.99. Certainly at those prices, it's cheaper than the AT&T Navigator which is $9.99 per month.
I'm not wild about renting my GPS. The data download model should be appealing, because theoretically the data should be up to date, but in the real world I haven't found the data all that fresh. The app is slower than the self contained apps like the Navigon or TomTom, but that is to be expected because MapQuest Navigator is downloading everything.
To be frank, I'm not knocked out by this app. The GUI is quirky and takes too much fiddling around. The POI data doesn't seem that up to date or accurate. The pricing is low, so if you're into downloading the data and living with the consequences, MapQuest Navigator is worth a look. You can invest $0.99 in it and see how it works for you.
Note to our readers: When I tried to go back to the iTunes store to see some user reviews, I couldn't see the app. The MapQuest blog reports there is some problem at the app store, so keep trying if you can't see it.
Full disclosure. MapQuest Navigator is from AOL, and TUAW is part of the AOL Tech network.
![TUAW [Cafepress]](http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.tuaw.com/media/tuaw-cafepress-promo.png)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Ryan Trevisol said 8:43AM on 10-12-2009
Am I the only one who thinks that navigation shouldn't be a service? Shouldn't you be able to get the basic functionality (no live traffic, etc) without any subscription price?
I have a Garmin GPS and once I bought it . . . that was it. It doesn't have live traffic, but only because I didn't feel like ponying up for the extra $80 for a lifetime subscription version.
Now I guess they'll tell you that you're downloading maps from their servers, and that's fine, but why not have it just install the maps on the device? IIRC my Garmin 750 has about 512MB of Ram. I'm more than willing do dedicate half a gig of my 16GB iPhone to maps. And if you cross into another region (Canada, Europe), it could warn you that you don't have the maps, and would you like to buy the maps in-app, and you can agree.
Honestly I'd rather see these apps cost $30 up front and not be subscription based.
And they'll never get a dime from me with this model.
Since when do people charge you 0.99 for a DEMO? That's insulting. It's not about the dollar. It's the principle.
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Kevin said 11:07AM on 10-12-2009
They have to charge $0.99 for the demo because billing through iTunes is only allowed on paid apps...
Ryan Trevisol said 11:16AM on 10-12-2009
Ah ok. Well that makes me feel better.
I'm going to Boston for 10 days in December. I'm walking and taking the T so I won't be using my Garmin. Maybe I'll give the trial a spin with no intention of buying the subscription.
Still, the use of subscription feels almost like they're doing it because they can. Like how some games added stupid in-app purchasing because . . . . well, it's there now, so let's do it. It just doesn't jive with the pricing model they've used in the past.
As an iPhone user, I already have an insulting amount of monthly fees associated with the privilege of using the Jesus Phone. I'm absolutely not going to add more on top of that.
Jamie said 9:00AM on 10-12-2009
You Are Not Alone
.. sorry couldn't help a Doctor Who reference.
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snowy2004 said 12:28PM on 10-12-2009
I'm glad to see I wan't the only Doctor Who fan who instantly thought of the same thing. :)
jack said 6:17PM on 10-12-2009
:-D Yay! The Face of Boe for iPhone.
Josh said 9:09AM on 10-12-2009
Interesting info about the iPhone app. Perhaps the app didn't list IHOP because the company has been exposed for food safety and animal cruelty isses. Check it out: www.humanesociety.org/ihop
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IHOP Communications said 6:25PM on 10-12-2009
Hi there, this is IHOP Communications. We wish to clear up some of the misconceptions in Josh’s posting. IHOP is against animal cruelty and has supplier standards that go beyond what is required by law to ensure the dignified, humane treatment. If we find a supplier is not meeting our standards, we address those issues with the supplier.
The Humane Society of the United States, a multi-million dollar organization, that many feel has a vegan/vegetarian agenda for the country (like PETA), has launched a campaign against IHOP because of our refusal to meet their demands to use cage-free eggs. Animal welfare experts’ opinions differ, and science has still not determined that cage-free housing is any better for laying hens then caged hens – in fact there are a number of reports that document the advantages and disadvantages of different systems for housing laying hens. Additional studies on how best to house hens are being done, and we remain open to the scientific-based outcomes of these reports. You can read more about it here.
Ensuring a great guest dining experience is important to us at IHOP, and we hope that you and your family will dine with us again soon.
Aaron Brown said 9:31AM on 10-12-2009
Don't bother with this app! I tried using it in Atlanta this weekend and it was never able to plan a route or even get a GPS fix on my 3GS. I regularly use TomTom for iPhone and I have used Navigon before also. Those apps work very well. This mapquest one does NOT!
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duke said 10:03AM on 10-12-2009
These two statements seems to contradict each other:
TUAW: Like the AT&T nav app, MapQuest Navigator [iTunes link] needs the internet for its data, so if you frequently drive where even the Edge network is a sometime visitor, forget using this app.
Developer: "Full Route Corridor Download: Quick route re-calculation for missed turns as well provides continued service in areas of no cellular coverage."
So apparently it caches the maps while you are traveling to your destination, which means that it's fine if you lose your signal (as long as you don't need to change your route somewhere in the middle). Funny I was able to determine all of this from the same article, but the author somehow missed it? Copy and paste without reading much?
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opsmason said 11:35AM on 10-12-2009
I prefer having a dedicated device for navigation, I don't want to miss a turn because I had to take a call. For me, a GPS app on the iPhone is a backup navigator. And I have a hard time paying $100 or whatever for a backup.
So I think the "rental" is great. I don't travel too often, but when I do, I don't want to pack my Garmin, let along swap out the map set. For $3.99, I can have a "good enough" GPS while I'm out of town. It may cost me $12 a year, and I always have updated maps, versus $99 for TomTom or the equivalent.
I am sad to hear the interface requires "fiddling", but I'll see just how bad it is this December.
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jb510 said 11:51AM on 10-12-2009
I too dislike the subscription model for this, as I do for most things. I do see how the pay-per-use/day works for some and am glad to see that offered. The New York Times has an interesting column on the subscription model this weekend.
The pricing of all of these seems high to me considering you already paid for the hardware, unlike standalone units.
I hope these apps for mobile devices spur better support for public transit and alternative forms of transit (walking, biking).
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Geoff said 1:38PM on 10-12-2009
I think it's fine to criticize navigation software for being a subscription service, but while it may not be right for YOU, I don't think that casts aspersions on the entire category. For some people, there are certainly advantages to buying a standalone navigator. For others, purchasing a non-subscription-based navigation app like Navigon's or TomTom's offerings is the right choice. But there's a large group of us for which neither of these options is particularly compelling. I don't have the need for a fulltime navigation system. I know my way around town, and on those infrequent occasions when I'm going someplace unfamiliar I can get there without much problem thanks to my general knowledge of the area. The upfront cost of a non-subscription app is off-putting, and I don't need or want to have a separate device sitting in my car which I need to be responsible for keeping safe (since GPS thefts are a big deal these days).
I generally like to have a navigation app when I'm going on long road trips to new places. So for me, the low price, pay-as-you-go model works great. Not only is there little upfront cost, but the traffic information is critical when I'm journeying to new places and don't know the locals' ways to get around interstate traffic jams. Moreover, at least with the new breed of pay-as-you-go nav. services, there's no real negative. Even if I choose to activate the navigation services every day of the year, after four years I'm still out only $131 (for Mapquest). And after those four years, I still have up-to-date maps; the standalone that I might have purchased four years earlier won't. (Of course, I'd be out $480 with AT&T solution, so there I'd really lose...)
There's room for all sorts of different models of navigation services, and I've been pleasantly surprised by the variety of different applications which have entered the iPhone marketplace. Here's hoping it continues.
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Sam said 2:24PM on 10-12-2009
They seem to be charging $3.99 up front now...
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JK said 11:36PM on 10-12-2009
yeah, just saw the mapquest blog stating: "Some of you may have noticed that when we initially launched MapQuest Navigator for iPhone, we offered a $.99 price for a 14-day trial. Unfortunately, due to App Store restrictions, we are now unable to support this offer. The application is now initially available for one month at $3.99."
ok by me, just aint shelling-out anything over $50 that I use a few times a year....
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