Google Maps for the iPhone Gets a Helpful New Navigation Feature

Google Maps – Spoken Traffic Direction

Google - GOOG Maps, in the latest update for iOS users has learned to portray and tell and the app would now be using spoken traffic directions when you tend to hit a slowdown ahead. Prior to the start of a trip, it would give you a verbal summary of the traffic condition. While moving, Google Maps tends to support in avoiding tunnels which are overcrowded as well as highway routes with accidents.

This feature tends to automatically pop up while utilising the Navigation feature to provide spoken turn-by-turn directions. The app would talk in mid-journey notifying of any incident which would lengthen the journey and provided options to reroute. It seems that Google is drawingout some of Waze’s best features.

Google had acquired Waze for $1.1 billion in 2003, a sum which seemed small in contrast to some of the latest acquisitions and funding sequences. Waze, significant of its secondary community based navigation app, Google would be integrating real time information with explanations for what could be causing the delays in Maps so thatdrivers would be able to avoid slowdowns flawlessly than earlier. This feature has been made available since May to Android users.

Voice Navigations & Alerts

Waze’s app got a new pretty redesign and it leaves one to wonder why it has not just replaced Google Map as the flagship navigation service for Google. Google Maps envisages more updates than iOS, in Android version and already tends to sport voice navigation as well as alerts.

This is one of the several features that Google has added to Google Maps for iOS this year and others comprise of the ability of sending location one would find on the browser of the phone, enhanced public transit direction for navigating cities as well as to see where one is going prior to departure with a Street View thumbnail on the map.

Besides the added spoken traffic alerts, Google also states that the latest update enables the user to easily add new and missing businesses from the sidebar. If one intends to install the update, they could check out the Google Maps page on the iTunes App Store.

Does Not Incorporate with Siri

Google Maps does not incorporate with Siri and does not run in the background like Apple Maps and the reason is that Apple does not give its third-party inventers, access to the APIs it tends to use to try and have an advantage over them.

 Google Maps tend to falter where any app would. One concern with regards to Google’s fault comes in the traffic estimates. Often the app tends to offer a route which tends to suffer from heavy traffic when it only affects a tiny portion of the trip.

Since one gets to view the actual traffic on the route before confirmation, it is only something to warn you regarding the traffic which will probably have no effect on the trip. It is hard to beat Google Maps, no matter what kind of transportation one would be using to move around. It seems easy to use with features found only in standalone GPS units, like lane guidance.

It is ahead of Apple especially when it comes to car and pedestrian navigation. Moreover, its accurate maps mean that one will never get lost. With the combination of accurate traffic information from Waze, Google Maps seems to be an easy choice for Editor’s Choice award.

Guide to Mastering the New Apple TV

Apple’s Streaming TV Box –Redesigned/Revamped

Apple’s streaming TV box features a redesigned remote control, a revamped interface with a full Apple Store. Besides streaming content from Netflix, Hulu and other services, the Apple TV doubles also as a gaming console.

It is said that Apple TV is not just for streaming anymore. It latest embodiment which will be shipped this week, tends to provide on the big screen almost anything one would earlier have done only on an iPhone or iPad. The new Apple TV seems to be an accomplished device though it is not flawless. The streaming TV features also tend to outdo its predecessor.

The Apple TV being a dependable streamer though till now its range had been limited to a few services which included HBO besides Netflix and Hulu. However, Apple did not let the addition of other channels like the competitive videogame play from Twitch.tv.

All this seems to have changed and the new Apple TV features the iPhone like app store which enables you with the choice of your own streaming services. It is no longer forceful in directing you to iTunes and the other service of Apple. One can customize their favourites on the home screen.

Quality of Video – Full High Definition

The quality of the video on the new Apple TV is very successful at full high definition which is technically known as 1080p and should be quite a bit for most of the individuals. Though video supporters may tend to complain that it does not maintain a high quality video standard known as ultra-high definition or 4K like the other streaming boxes do, but there are not many 4K TVs or much of the programming made available so far.

The remote of the Apple TV does not seem to have a headphone jack that the other streaming devices such as the Roku 3 and 4 as well as the Nividia Shield tend to provide, to spare family and roommates during night.

Apple TV on the contrary supports Bluetooth wireless headphones and one needs to buy them separately. So far it is not known whether one will be able to stream video from Amazon and Google Play. Both the companies seem to have competing video stores and one point could be the cut that Apple tends to take on in-app digital sales.

Voice Search with Siri Virtual Assistant

Other main services expected on the Apple TV include Google’s YouTube. The CBC News app will be compatible for iOS with Apple TV at the time of launch and on adding the CBC News app; users would then be in a position to watch The National live and on demand together with demand episodes of Marketplace as well as the Fifth Estate and latest news clips.

Besides this, the new Apple TV also permits voice searches with the use of Siri virtual assistant. On request, Seinfeld or Jennifer Lawrence together with Apple TV can look through the catalogs for iTunes, Netflix, Hulu, HBO and Showtime with much more.

 Users could also ask for good documentaries to view. By default the Apple TV comes with the following apps namely iTunes Movies, iTunes TV Shows, the App Store, photos, music, search, computers and settings. Besides these stock apps, the fourth generation Apple TV unveils an App Store full of third party apps as well as games for the television.

Apple’s Survey App Helps Venues Easily Create Indoor Maps

Apple’s Dedicated Indoor Positioning App - iOS

Apple had now launched a dedicated indoor positioning app on iOS, enabling business holders to map out their venues by utilising their iPhones. The Indoor Survey App was first noticed on the App Store by Steve Troughton-Smith, a developer and though it did not appear in search, it is effortlessly accessible through a direct link.

The app had been updated on October 27 and hence it had been on the App Store for a week before anyone had discovered it. Its description stated that an iOS 9 would be needed or later with iPhone, iPad and iPod touch compatibility together with an 18MB download size. Description on iTunes reads thus `enable indoor positioning within a venue using the Indoor Survey App.

By dropping points on a map within the Survey App, you indicate your position within the venue as you walk through and as you do, the Indoor Survey App measures the radio frequency – RF signal data combining it with an iPhone’s sensor data’.

 Apple had been building up its indoor mapping tools for a year now in silence. It had introduced iBeacons in 2013, small Bluetooth transmitters, which retailers as well as venue owners could utilise in delivering location specific notifications and alerts.

Mixture of Wi-Fi & Radio Signals – Track Positions

In the iOS 8 update last year, Apple had given the developers access to more comprehensible location data using the iPhone’s indication coprocessor. As noted by Apple Insider, the Indoor Survey App utilises a mixture of Wi-Fi and radio signals in order to track positions, like the technology created by Silicon Valley start-up,WiFiSLAM that was purchased by Apple in 2013, at a price of $20 million.

Apple had also launched in October, the Apple Maps Connect that invited business owners to submit their indoor mapping information. Though this was not for small corner shops, Apple specified that participating venues should be accessible to the general public offering Wi-Fi connectivity throughout and drawing over one million visitors yearly.

According to a report from 9to5Mac, indoor position, as of June last year was added to locations which comprised of the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco and the Mineta San Jose International Airport. There is a possibility that the Indoor Survey App could be beneficial in extending this availability and make it easy as App Store descriptions notes for venue holders to gather data without installing any special hardware.

Maps Connect

Apple’s mapping attempts was something that was needed in the past and the company had apologized for moving from Google Maps with iOS 6 in 2012. Since the failure, Apple had made several attempts in improving the quality of its maps and had launched the Maps Connect urging small businesses to improve their Maps selecting public venues with more than one million yearly visitors.

With iOS 9, Apple had extended its map offerings including transit directions and like the Indoor Survey tends to include navigation options for indoor locations. The company has made a limited quantity of iPhone apps available through its App Store and had only 16 apps shown on the store page at the time of writing.

Apple seems to have a history of bundling apps together with stock iOS should it feel that the functionality is crucial to a core iOS involvement. This had led to some complaints stating that the basic OS has too many additions.

Apple Updates iMacs with 4K and 5K Retina Displays

iMac Range – Latest Retina Display/Force Touch Capabilities

The iMac range with latest Retina displays as well as Force Touch capabilities has been updated by Apple due to its new line of wireless accessories. For the first time the standard iMac of 21.5 inch now tend to feature a Retina 4K displaywhile the 27 inch range is updated to sport Retina 5K displays.

Three wireless accessories had been released by the company, namely the Magic Keyboard, Magic Mouse 2 and Magic Trackpad 2. This was to bring its Force Touch technology to the desktop models. All three models tend to have rechargeable batteries with each new iMac would come with new Magic Keyboard together with Magic Mouse 2 as standard while the Magic Trackpad 2 would be sold separately. The new Retina displays would make photos and videos much more immersive and true-to-life due to its colour range as well as outstanding image quality.

The iMacs also features more commanding processors and graphics, with two Thunderbolt® 2 ports accompanied with new storage options which make the high performance Fusion Drive affordable. Philip Schiller, Senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing for Apple has commented that `for the first iMac till day, the spirit of iMac has not faltered, delivering the ultimate desktop experience with the latest technologies, gorgeous displays and cutting edge designs’.

Text Sharper/Videos Lifelike

He further added that `these are the most stunning iMacs we’ve ever made. With our gorgeous new Retina displays, more powerful processors and graphics and all new Magic accessories, the new iMac continues to redefine the ultimate desktop experience. The text looks sharper than ever, with retina displays and the videos appear lifelike and one gets to view new levels of details in photos.

The 21.5 inch iMac is made available with all new Retina 4K display comprising of 4096 x 2304 resolution and 9.4 million pixels, which is 4.5 times more than the standard 21.5 inch iMac display. Each 27 inch iMac comprising of a Retina 5K display which, isthe highest resolution all-in-one display has 14.7 million pixels, which is 7 times more than an HD display. The Retina display on the 21.5 inch iMac and each 27 inch iMac, the iMac with Retina display is now much more affordable.

Wider P3 Based Colour Range

Moreover the new Retina displays tend to feature a wider choice of colour range which brings about brilliance and true to life colours to the desktop. The 5K and 4K Retina displays has a wider P3-based colour range providing a 25% larger colour space with more available colours where the images are more intense exposing great details.

The latest 27 inch iMac together with Retina 5K display tends to come with sixth generation Intel Core processors and the new AMD high performance graphics delivering around 3.7 teraflops of compute power. The new 21.5 inch iMac having Retina 4K display comprises a fifth generation Intel Core processor with improved Intel Iris Pro Graphics.

Two Thunderbolt 2 ports which are standard on all iMac tend to deliver around 20Gbps data transfer speed for external drives with great performance peripherals with three streams 802.11ac Wi-Fi enables iMac to support around 1.3Gbps wireless networking. The new Magic Keyboard, Magic Mouse 2 together with Magic Trackpad 2 seems to be more comfortable, proficient and environment friendly.

iCar Release Date Rumours

Apple Developing Electric iCar – Project Titan

Reports reveal that Apple is developing an electric iCar to compete with Tesla. It has been reported that Apple is negotiating with BMW and rustling Samsung employees, particularly battery specialist and reassigning many of the staff for its Project Titan.

There have been several reports since February that Apple has been working on a car which would give Tesla a run for its money, after an Apple employee had been informed by Business Insider having knowledge on the subject. This was related to the sightings of cars arrayed with sensors/cameras, registered to Apple.

According to The Wall Street Journal, the iCar project has been dubbed `Titan’, which initially stated that there were many hundred, Apple employees operating on the project. This has been backed by new report, claiming that the iCar would be released in 2019, will not be fully autonomous but will be fully electric with a few smart features like it would be complete with emergency braking, cruise control which will handle the accelerator and breaks on motorways and in traffic together with automatic lane changing system which will be activated by a flick of the indicator stalk.

iPhone Experience to Vehicle Through CarPlay

Tim Cook, CEO of Apple while speaking at Wall Street Journal’s WSJDLive conference at The Montage resort in Laguna Beach, California stated that the automotive industry seems to be close to massive change.

However, he refrained from commenting on whether Apple would lead part of the change which Cook forecasts would be seeing users move away from internal combustion engines to electrification. At the conference, Cook mentioned that itseems like there would be massive change in that industry. One may not agree with that but that seemed to be his belief.

This was followed by his refusal to respond to reports of Apple’s development of an electric car to be on sale by 2019. Instead he informed that the company has been working to bring the iPhone experience to the vehicle through CarPlay, Apple’s in-dash system which tends to permit users in accessing their iTunes music collections together with driving directions with the requirements of operating phones. According to the Guardian, Project Titan seems to be on its way, with the newspaper reporting that Apple has already developed its self-driving car and is need of testing.

Apple Interested in Carbon Fibre Reinforced BMW i3 Electric Vehicle

In contrast to several car makers like Google and Tesla, which are testing their self-driving cars on public road, Apple is keen on keeping a low profile. This indicates that the company is in need of some secured doors behind which it could test its private project.

Several outlets have revealed that Apple and the German automaker BMW have been coordinating with one another with Reuters reporting that Apple important person together with Tim Cook have been visiting BMW production facility in Leipzig.

Apple, in particular had been interested in the carbon fibre reinforced BMW i3 electric vehicle which was reported as the most energy efficient car in the US and is believed that the i3 would form the basis of the rumoured iCar, It has been further claimed that negotiations had started in autumn of 2014 between Apple and BMW and are now approaching a final deal. But it is worth mentioning that BMW had been the first carmaker to incorporate iPod facilities in its vehicles and it is entirely possible that Apple is simply looking to secure an agreement with the German company to move its CarPay project ahead.