[snarg]

This is a ridiculous argument. Google Maps is all but useless with location history turned off. Google offers the illusion of choice because the option makes it sound like they respect your privacy, while they're strongly motivated to convince you to hand over your data.

[hermannj314]

I have had location history turned off for 3 years and it works fine for me.

I always type in my home address, In fact it never remembers anything and I love that.

I'm glad Google gave me the option to turn it off and still use their product for free.

[judge2020]

Also the 'home' address and other address labels don't require location history to be turned on to enable quick navigation.

[prepend]

I had it turned off for many years and caved about a year ago.

Because: -it asks me every time I open it. Every day. -it won’t save places or favorites -it won’t save local maps -it won’t save my home address or common routes

Basically, they don’t do any local storage and force you to share data with google to get “basic” functionality that Apple Maps and other maps apps provide because storing local settings is dead simple (although local settings are encrypted and synced to cloud and can’t be read or used for analysis).

[ascar]

What exactly are you losing by turning off location history?

You can still look up places, get navigation and as far as I am aware literally every other features of Google maps except your timeline.

[RajT88]

Like others, I've had location history off for a long time now (5 years?).

It works just fine with it off. Although on some devices, it prompts me to re-enable it every time I launch it (as well as turn on location sharing). I never get these prompts on my phones, but always on my Samsung tablet.

[judge2020]

Google has long abandoned updating the tablet versions of their apps, only maintaining them to ensure they don't break. Even the YouTube app on tablets is years behind on features (the side effect of this is that it harms the experience when using a folding phone).

[reportgunner]

I remember there was a time when Google Maps android app refused to work when location was turned off, not location history - just location permission for the app. In those cases I would just allow location permission, look up what i needed and disable it again.

Nowadays it lets you use itself without location permission.

[caddemon]

The primary purpose of Google Maps is navigation (including e.g. traffic detection)? You need location services on for navigation obviously but I don't see why the location history setting is a requisite functionality. I use Maps all the time but not location history.

[nilespotter]

I make periodic use of Google Maps and find it useful. My phone doesn't even have play services.

[bioemerl]

I'm not making an argument though? I'm saying I'd like to have my location history without it being tied to Google.