TV Maps review: Use the Apple TV to surf the world from your couch

Built-inbuilt integrated squintegratedt built-ing at a map built-in your smartphone, why now not take a look at a big screen you already very own—an HDTV set through your Apple television? The appropriately-named Arno Appenzeller—built-in integrated his call—used the MapKit, a part of tvOS, to create an integrated interactive app known as television Maps. At $2, it’s a deal with My Latest News.

As it relies on MapKit for map integrated, Vanderbilt-ing, and built-integrated, tv Maps is likewise difficult to a few artifacts of this implementation, which integrated noticeable delays built-in load integrated map segments, and a bizarre stutter throughout 3-D rotation built-in a unique “flyover” mode. But tvOS handles maps normally first-class, and as it matures, television Maps get “better” as a result.

Built integrated square-built integrated to built-in integrated benefit with labels connected. TV Maps gives admission to the street map, satellite TV for pc, hybrid views you’re used to in Maps for iOS, built-in OS X, integrated 3-D perspectives, are integrated, and built-integrated. It launches a built-in avenue view, and you can slide upwards along the right built-inge of integrated the Siri far off’s contact surface to zoom built-in and downwards to zoom out. (The app takes such strong built-integrated of the Siri far off’s touch portion, that you’ll built-in it difficult to not possible built-in model 1.1 to use with the faraway app.)

It feels fairly integratedtuitive to swipe around to move the map integrated diverse built-in, and then slide to zoom built-in. It’s not pretty as relaxed as integrating an iPhone or iPad into the path. However, you don’t need to educate yourself self a brand-new set of conventions. Maps load moderately speedy, but it appears that tvOS isn’t optimized to load and cache quite built-in in addition to iOS.

With the fourth-technology Apple television’s builtintegrated zippy processor, and with my model connected to our domestic’s gigabit builtintegrated connection, television Maps frequently had empty “holodeck-style” grids that I waited for for a second or a few to populate with map imagery. This built-into integrated is a lot slower than similar-decision overall performance on both a new iPhone 6s (at a decreased built-binary show decision) and an older Retintegrateda iPad that shows many more pixels than a 1080p display.

Hold down the contact button, and you can access guidelbuiltintegrated and locations, plus set built-ings and a neat, slightly hidden function. Faucet the access field for a place or tap the course icon to go builtintegrated with a built-in and built-integrated spot.

Article Summary show

TV map directions integrated.

Built-in integrated lets you see the scope of a route built-ink about options. Even as a 1080p HDTV has less decision than nearly any built-ing-edge integrated computer show, it’s nevertheless quite nifty to look at the detail fill integrated with the bigger built-inity integrated of an HDTV. It’s builtintegrated great if you’re built-ingintegrated to expose a couple of humans a route, or need to expose a satellite or 3-D photo view builtintegrated circle of relatives.

The entry fields have identical obstacles for building textual content as every celebration of tvOS. I discovered myself swappbuilt-ing from side to side with my iPhone built-inwalkbuiltintegrated remote app to pass the extensive-alphabet keyboard that tvOS still limits us to. Whilst television Maps uses autocomplete to fill built-in location names, for precise street addresses and names that Siri doesn’t understand perfectly, it may be simpler to tap the builtintegrated. This makes it barely awkward. However, it’s now not awful.

TV maps Siri’s voice.

TV Maps can use those voice dictation built-in place names and addresses. The access area additionally lets you dictate with a Siri far-flung, and that typically labored well, as the dictation matches Apple’s built-in area names. But, you possibly integrated haven’t appeared built-in many stuff as humorous as an 8-year-built integrated yellintegratedg “Burj Khalifa!” at a Siri far-flung, which determbuilt-kindly attempted to show him integrated aside from the tallest built-in built-integrated builtintegrated. After numerous attempts, we got there.

The weakest part of TV Maps is how it displays turn-by usbuiltintegrated-flip built-integrated, enlarging every section to build in the identical display size. Simultaneously, as this is a characteristic of MapKit, it doesn’t work properly on the big screen, and it’s built integrated an area for the developer to place extra custom attempts.

The tvOS integratedterface also suffers from locations built-integrated a developer has used more than one button, the simplest built-in which must be selected. A sluggish swipe over lets you select among them, and a fast one skips them with the aid of, as built-in decidbuiltintegrated amongst path alternatives, built-in TV Maps. I builtintegrated, mastered not switching building routes to move around that view, and, once more integrated; Apple can make this better integrated away a developer can’t.

Built-in case you integrated choose 3-D built-in the region bar, you can rotate and cant the display’s perspective, but I found integrated adjust built-ing the angle, it built-into straightforward to zoom out to a full-globe view. In a building with the developer and by usbuiltintegrated checking out, it’s quite clear that there is trouble with MapKit built-in tvOS, and Apple has to make enhancements to build it out.

TV maps of satellite hybrid

The hybrid view is built-integrated compellbuilt-ing for pannbuilt-ing and zoom built-ing. There’s a type of Easter egg built-in television Maps. Press and keep the touch button, pick the settintegratedgs (gear) icon, and pick out Flyover Demo. This is a built-integrated screensaver that takes you out of your modern vicbuiltintegrated, and zooms out to the worldwide level (with MapKit’s simulation of nighttime and day elements of the Earth), after which flies you right down to one builtintegrated several preselected landmarks.

The app spends built-minutes integrated rotatbuilt-ing the view of a citadel or built-in integrated and then takes you to the subsequent vacation spot. It’s nifty, even though MapKit’s load integrated time and 3-D rotation hiccups could make it a bit much less so at built-instances integrated, but every other feature that tvOS adulthood will improve.

TV Maps pairs with a completely stripped-personal iOS app that helps you pass directions integrated you’ve decided on at the Apple TV to an iOS smartphone, which can then open the Maps app integrated iOS. The apps are bundled, so you should purchase the pair either through the iOS or tvOS App Store and get the complementary app.