After more than 10 years of launch, Apple Maps is about to have an important update

Saving offline maps is a feature that has been available on Google Maps for a long time, but Apple device users have to wait until iOS 17 to experience it on the Apple Maps application. Previously, the only way to use it was to download Google Maps to iPhone or iPad. iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 will be released in mid-September, right after the iPhone 15 series introduction event (expected to take place on September 12 or 13).

After updating the operating system for the device, users can open Apple Maps on the phone, select the Account Profile Picture > Offline Maps > Download New Map > Select the map area to download > Download . The map area to download can be around the current geographic location or anywhere else in the world. This map data will be saved on the device and used in case the device is not connected to the Internet. Users can choose Apple Maps offline via Wi-Fi or mobile network (fees may apply depending on the data plan being used with the carrier).

In addition to adding the important feature above, Apple Maps also added new information that has never appeared on Google Maps. Accordingly, Apple's Maps application can display information about the status of mobile signals (poor or good) in the area where users want to download maps to their devices. There has been no official announcement about the source of information related to the quality of mobile signals that Apple uses. One of the possibilities is through cooperation with telecommunications service providers.

There is currently no official version of iOS 17, but users can still experience the above feature through the iOS 17 Public Beta versions released by Apple for mass testing. However, before updating the operating system, users need to back up the data on the device to avoid loss during the installation process. Installing and using Beta operating system versions has the risk of errors or instability because it is only a test.

Apple Maps first launched with iOS 6 in 2021. At first, the app was described as a "mess" with incorrect information and labels for landmarks in many different countries. In Australia, Apple Maps was considered a "life-threatening" software because of so many errors that CEO Tim Cook had to publicly apologize and even suggest that users use other mapping services until Apple could fix the problem.

Khanh Linh

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