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Post-Microsoft Nokia Offering Mapping Services To Samsung
jfruh writes: With Nokia's Windows Phone handset line sold off to Microsoft, one of the company's remaining businesses is its Here digital mapping service. No longer feeling loyalty to Microsoft or its OS, Nokia has inked a deal with Samsung to supply Here services to both Tizen and Android devices, including the upcoming Samsung smartwatch.
I use OSMAnd on my phone[1], but my girlfriend recently bought a Windows Phone and I've been very impressed with Nokia's mapping app (I actually like a lot of what Microsoft's done with Windows Phone 8, but it's a strange mix of very polished and well-designed UI parts and completely unfinished parts with missing features). It's good to see more competition with Google maps, which is becoming increasingly entrenched in spite of the fact that the UI is pretty poor in many regards and the mapping data is terrible. For example, here they're missing (or have in the wrong places) most of the cycle paths, which ends up with people regularly getting lost if they rely on Google, in spite of the fact that all of this data is in OpenStreetMap.
[1] For me, it's the killer app for Android. Offline maps, offline routing, and open source backed by high-quality mapping data from OpenStreetMap. I use the version from the F-Droid store, which doesn't have the limitations of the free version from Google Play and it's one of the few open source apps that I've donated money to.
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I recently picked up a cheap refurbished factory unlocked Nokia Lumia as a secondary phone, specifically for the free Offline Nokia Here Drive+Maps support. Considering the expense of getting a TomTom, Garmin, or iGO dedicated GPS unit with world map coverage plus unlimited updates, the Nokia Lumia was a much cheaper option. Having factory unlock, also allows me to purchase inexpensive micro-SIM GSM cards when travelling to avoid costly roaming charges.
In fact, in my most recent trip to Europe, I used it specifically for drive navigation with a cheap removable phone bracket, and it worked just as good as dedicated GPS. Saving me much more than the cost of this phone compared to renting GPS navigation for 2 weeks from the car rental company.
Furthermore, my Nokia phone is lighter, slimmer, and has better (> 720p) display than dedicated GPS. Furthermore, Nokia Here Maps, it also works great when walking around the city, looking for hotel and other POI.
My only complaint is that despite having offline maps for just about every significant country, South Korea and Japan are suspiciously missing, even though I really need them. :(
My biggest compliant with Windows Phone 8.1, running on my Nokia Lumia, is the lack of local offline backups (since I don't trust the cloud with my data), and device client certificate management needed for S/MIME, Wireless WPA-Enterprise, web client certificates, etc. Both of these are features are fully supported for years on iOS and Android, but Windows Phone 8.1 requires sending up MDM (Mobile Device Management Server) on WIndows 8.* to manage PKI externally, as oppose to on the device locally like iOS and Android do.
For my next primary phone, I have want a phablet, and have been on the fence between upcoming iPhone 6 (with large 5.5" of higher display) or Samsung Galaxy Note 4, both hopefully available by the end of this year.
Havinvg Nokia Here Drive+Maps with free downloadable offline maps on the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Note 4 would be enough to tip the scales away from iPhone 6.
Nokia did not sell the name 'Nokia' to Microsoft, and from January 1, 2016, is free from Microsoft's shackles to sell mobile phones again. Microsoft can't sell "Nokia Lumias", only Microsoft Lumias.
The option remains open to, for example, purchase Jolla and in doing so, regain much of the former Nokia team and (and their funky Linux from Finland, where it all started...) and use the modern version that's available to them of the OS that once was Harmatten/Meego, that drives the awesome N9/N950.
In fact some of the funding to start Jolla came from severance packages to the team that was laid of by Elop, having delivered the N9, in spite of Elop's interference and obstacles on the way to enriching himself and his masters.
You can't be ahead of the curve, if you're stuck in a loop.
Google maps doesn't work offline. I know you can download and save maps. I downloaded sections two months ago. They where about 11 to 13 MB each. When I needed it, I pulled out my phone. GPS worked and it took me to my location on Google Map. But there was one problem. Only the major roads had names. All the small roads were missing names. To get that part of the map you need to connect to wi-fi or a cellular network - which wasn't an option. Caching a section of a map should mean just that - the map and all the important stuff, like road names, get cached. Perhaps at this point all the smart people have moved on an left Google leaving only the marketing and business people. Google's absolute insistence that you should not be allowed to do anything without being connected is infuriating. I assume Google can't stand the fact that there might be 10 minutes when they are not actively tracking one of their users.
To make things worse, when you have no signal and you need maps, you will find Google has deleted all your cached maps older than 30 days, so you are shit out of luck. Will someone inform Google that in most parts of the country it takes 3 years to build or change a road. Not 30 days. An old map is better than nothing. Actually, 99.99% of the time it is just fine.
I previously used Nokia Maps. I only use the map. No directions or other crap. As a simple map, it was an excellent product. I don't need or want anything else other than a map with correct, up to date roads and road names. I somehow passed the 3rd grade, so I have the intelligence to figure out directions on my own.
The option remains open to, for example, purchase Jolla...
Pun not intended...but that boat has sailed at least for Nokia. Nokia might be free of the shackles of Microsoft, but who is lest to care. Elops misguided 1:1 conversion from symbian to Windows Phone strategy when its company was twice the size of Apple and four times the size of Microsoft and growing has failed. it is not even in the top 10 of phone manufactures. Its brand irreparably tarnished.
Elop is his desire to sell Nokia to Microsoft for Millions in his own pocket has cost Nokia billions, has cost tens of thousands of employees jobs(some still to go), manufacturing worldwide(Luminas are simply another third party Chinese phone), even its headquarters has been sold off. Its carrier connections destroyed though Its infrastructure is simply none existent. What is left is not a phone company...just another patent troll(I know they own more) waiting for a big buyout.
I wish Jolla all the best, but for any success anyone e.g. Intel, Lenovo, Facebook all would be better choices. Nokia is simply not a contender.