I've been using Waze for a while and love the intergation and the use of speed limits, accidents and reports of road works/police etc.
But also want to know what everyone else use and why?
Google Maps UI looks easier and much friendly to understand. But which has the fastest routes/shortest milage?
Mod: Added poll
the point was to know peoples actual opinion, not a one sided answer.
Oh well. The mods have added a poll and I voted.
Last I heard Google owns Waze
Google map
While Google Maps has a far more pleasing UI, in my opinion, I'm currently using Waze more due to the community aspect which allows other road users to report hazards, accidents, speed traps, etc. in realtime & which notifies you of any on your route (similar to the now-defunct Trapster, which was great). I'm also quite taken with the points-based gamification aspect, which gives you points for reporting things, etc. when others thank you.
melways
refidex
Bit confused.. I've quickly googled it and these look like those street directories..
.. or was that the point? lol
Metroview
I think it's pretty handy for Waze to have the live user reporting features (hazards, accidents etc).
This however, prompts a curious thought. How many of you here actually use your GPS when travelling along your day-to-day familiar route?
"This however, prompts a curious thought. How many of you here actually use your GPS when travelling along your day-to-day familiar route?"
I use Waze for this.
I use it pretty much every time I get in the car, saved me many a time from traffic jams. Usual route home the other night would have been 15 minutes longer, and I did notice the usual route was gridlocked (roads run parallel).
I use Waze as well. It's pretty damn handy for sussing out high traffic spots in real time and it will guide accordingly. Hasn't failed me yet.
Waze - the speed/red light camera warning, and speed warning, are incredibly useful. It also uses Google traffic data, so you get the best of both worlds. The only thing I don't like is you put a specific address in Waze (street number), but it doesn't take you to that exact number, just the street. It's a bit vague that way, not sure what's so hard about getting you to the exact address!
Same for me - adds the benefits of accident/police reports - even if I know the route I go on, it's handy to know where cops are
What is Waze?
Google maps to plot the route, waze while driving (sometimes, when i remember).
I use google for directions on the rare occasions I need them
I use Waze for police locations - On my daily commute & pretty much everywhere I go, especially on the bike.
- Pro Tip - I found the voice a little quiet when I'm on the bike so I recorded my own voice for the speed camera announcements and screamed into the phone, It's nice n loud now.
I've used Waze for directions a couple of times and it did some weird things.
I was coming out of the gold coast once heading back to Brisbane (North) and it wanted me to head south. I had to flick google on to get back on track. I had both of them on at the same time telling me different things. It sounds amusing but I wasn't amused at the time.
I've used Waze for directions a couple of times and it did some weird things.
I was coming out of the gold coast once heading back to Brisbane (North) and it wanted me to head south. I had to flick google on to get back on track. I had both of them on at the same time telling me different things. It sounds amusing but I wasn't amused at the time.
I'm also in Brisbane and I find Waze often gives me a bum steer.
MapFactor.
Waze due to the speed limits feature. Save me the hassle of constantly looking down at my speedometer.
Waze…avoid Police Traps…..
Waze, for the accurate on screen GPS speed, speed limits, details about road hazards (including police/cameras).
Waze is also much betetr at predicting arrival times, it's got a good handle on weekly patterns (great at picking RDO Mondays), whereas Google Maps only seems to use real time data to predict changes in arrival time, which means you get caught up in the incidents which cause the slow downs.
Lastly, Waze is really good at picking back street short cuts, especially in peak hours.
I use both.
I tend to use Google Maps if going somewhere new primarily for two reasons:
I like Waze, but I feel there's something about it that's lacking. I like the live speedometer, the warnings about cameras and the community-based aspect of it, but I wish it would show alternatives on the map whilst in navigation mode.
Question for you guys (if anyone happens to know the answer)…
Given that Google owns Waze, why (it seems) are there discrepancies between what is reported in both the apps? This can be both from a traffic point of view and from an accidents/hazards point of view.
Waze uses historic trip times/speeds to predict times, as well as actual travel times for others on the route.
Google uses actual travel times only.
If you drive through peak hour traffic, Google Maps will only start delaying your arrival time when cars start slowing down. Waze knows they will slow down based on past history, so will give you a more accurate arrival time.
Hm ok so that's the technical explanation. Out of curiosity what's your source?
What I really had in mind though was given they are owned by the same company, why have they (deliberately?) configured it differently?
I did a quick google on difference between Waze and Google Maps to find it out.
And yes, Alphabet owns Waze, but the same search above revealed that to date, they are running it independently, although they do share some data between the two products. (How unusual, Alphabet having two products which do the same thing….)
The other thing the search told me was other peoples opinions, which is that Google Maps was better for offline & route preparation purposes, while Waze was more like your standalone traditional car GPS and tended to be better at turn by turn navigation (and more readily routed through back street shortcuts).
I thought Waze was an Israeli company, which was bought by Google. They would have different API's and will probably integrate each other at some point.
Waze
Has anyone noticed when using Waze via Android Auto you cannot search your Contacts locations as a destination?
Thx Op. Never heard of Waze before. But have now installed and will try it out.
On a slightly different note… I was planning a trip in Europe and came across Michelin (tyres) had a great site for planning month long trip. Options included usual trip time, trip distance but also trip cost (tolls)…. never got to do the trip but have saved the route for the bucket list!
Thats the site i used before the time of google maps. I didnt know it stil existed :)
Include a poll maybe