[panic]

I'm confused by the replies saying that more dense labels would somehow harm usability for driving or navigation. When you're driving, you know where you're going, the map knows where you're going, and it's easy to see the route you need to take. When you're not on a route, denser labels help you to orient yourself with the map and to know when to zoom into a particular location.

That said, I also think the focus on paper maps is misplaced. Old-style road maps had to answer the question, "how do I get there from here?" New-style digital maps don't need to answer that question any more! Questions new-style maps need to answer include:

* I know the name of a place or street; where should I zoom in to see more things around that place or street?

* I need to go to a (gas station / rest stop / hospital); where's the closest one?

* How would I get home from where I am?

* I'm in an unfamiliar place and would like to go "downtown" (where there are restaurants and things to do); where is "downtown"?

* Where is my car right now?

Roads help you to orient yourself with the map, but they aren't as fundamentally important to digital maps as they were to old-style road maps. The visual space of the map might be better spent helping answer questions like these.

[Gustomaximus]

For driving Google Maps getting quite bad. See this screenshoot: http://imgur.com/uPO8QJh

This kind of crowded display is fairly common now. I use Here Maps now which is much better + I like supporting a second option to avoid one service getting 2 monopolistic.

My theory of why google maps is getting worse is there must be designers dedicated to this that need to constantly look for 'new' things to add even if its to the detriment as they can hardly say its all good now and twiddle their thumbs. Maybe that's unfair but I've seen this effect on other digital products first hand.

[swiley]

The worst part about Google maps while driving is that it won't read directions until your right up on the turn.

[yardie]

Indeed. I'm that idiot driving in circles around the roundabout because Google Maps gives me the turn right as I'm passing it.

Also, it's forking is completely fucked. If there are 2 right turns coming up it does not indicate which lane I should be in. In once case I had to drive 60kms, 30 kms there and back, because the interchange had 3 right exits and I chose wrong.

Now I use Google Maps to find the location and copy the coordinates into Apple Maps. Or use Waze.

[anonu]

I always assumed Waze had the same maps as Google...

[rdancer]

Or two turns ahead if you're cycling. They don't seem to take speed into account.

[rory096]

The big problem is that routes used to be useful without turn-by-turn navigation - back when there were bubbles on each turn you could click on to see. Now you're stuck trying to read a long list of directions, or you use turn-by-turn and have no idea where you're going until the last second before each turn.

[givinguflac]

I agree. Apple Maps and Here maps are both a much better navigation experience now in my opinion. Google maps still has a bit of an advantage on POI, but for 98% of my uses Apple and Nokia do a better job.

[deelowe]

This is my #1 complaint as well. "Turn right" Welp, guess I'm making a u-turn.

[jug]

That seems oddly bad for being by Google and their skilled engineers. It's really just about factoring in your speed and distance... We've done this sort of thing ourselves in our apps. :/ It wasn't obvious in theory as for what parameters felt "just right", but these insights came soon enough after just a few trial runs in different speeds.

[Cerium]

For me this is not a problem. I glance at the top left of the screen to see the direction of the next turn, left or right, then I get in the left or right lane. Also, when I miss a turn the rerouting is fast enough it's hardly a problem.

My big complaint is that Google maps announces I'm on the fastest route even when I know I'm not!

[fma]

Maybe they are taking notes from Waze. Waze by default is so crowded your entire map is just icons of random stuff you don't care about. Then every once in a while half your screen is filled by an add that you need to dismiss, while driving, to see where you are going.

[DonHopkins]

That could cause accidents! I hope they're at least relevant ads for auto and life insurance, tow trucks, chiropractors, tombstones, etc.

[fma]

It's ads like, there's a KFC en route to my destination.

Touch here to dismiss, touch there to set as destination. It takes like 30 seconds for it to automatically disappear. If I'm on a route I'm familiar with I just let it disappear...but times where I'm going somewhere new I frantically lean forward to my dashboard to dismiss their ad.

[djKianoosh]

ha no, it's just junk food/fast food ads mostly

[pgrote]

Which platform for you use for Waze? I use Android and have never seen an ad while moving. Sometimes, the ads show if I am stopped at a stoplight, but they disappear when the car begins moving.

[fma]

iOS. The funny thing is, is I'm moving 5mph out of my driveway and trying to put my destination it asks if I'm a passenger...

If they want to prevent accidents stop popping up ads that take up half my map while I'm driving down the highway.

[chris_wot]

There are also one too many buttons when you choose a route. If I want to drive, then I type in the address, select it, press a button to activate it, then press a similar button to start the route.

Why is that last button needed?

[neilc]

Personally I like this UX. I often pullup the directions to a destination without actually starting turn-by-turn navigation: I'd like to see whether Google recommends taking highway X or Y, and then I can drive the rest of the route myself.

[majewsky]

Exactly. Just yesterday, I used it to get an accurate reading of the driving distance between two cities.

[white-flame]

One thing I still use Google maps and the GPS one on Android is to learn an area. For that, it is incredibly useful to map the real-world and digital context of where you are in relation to your surroundings, not just have it laser-honed on your route.

I've noticed when purely following GPS directions that I can't remember how to get there, even after a few times following it. Knowing the area helps you take your own informed alternate routes, know what things are on the way that you might want to detour (oh, I needed to go to the post office anyway), recognize if the GPS is going to the wrong destination because of user error, etc.

[taneq]

To expand on your second point, I believe Google Maps is optimized for the user to be following directions. Labels are irrelevant when you've got a blue line to follow.

In their perfect world you don't orient yourself with the map. You tell the map what you want and it tells you how to get there.

[diminish]

Actually I had to switch to another provider due to sparse labelling, need for zooming/unzooming especially during navigation where you have inconsistent connectivity.

Google maps labeling is wrong and dangerous for drivers due to the need to keep your finger there.