Nokia's Here Maps out now for iOS, the wait for a true Google Maps replacement continues
The perfect iOS maps app is not Here — Nokia's new Here Maps app for iOS has made its way to the App Store today, promising free turn-by-turn voice navigation, public transit information, and rich traffic reports.
Context & Ripple Effects
This lands mid-campaign by Nokia to turn cartography into a weapon. Since September, when it publicly argued its maps were better than Apple's, Nokia has launched its first US Windows Phone 8 handsets, rebranded its location service as HERE, confirmed an acquisition of 3D capture firm earthmine, and signed a Mozilla partnership to carry its mapping across other operating systems.
Today's iOS release is the cross-platform extension of that push: with Google Maps still absent from the App Store, Nokia is putting free turn-by-turn voice navigation, transit data, and traffic reports directly onto the iPhone. The pickup list — TechCrunch, BGR, MacRumors, TUAW among eight outlets — shows how much attention any credible iOS maps challenger commands right now.
First-order effects
- iPhone users immediately gain a free, full-featured navigation alternative to Apple's troubled built-in Maps, and Nokia gains brand and data reach on the platform where its own phones don't sell.
- The release sharpens Nokia's Lumia pitch: buyers see the same HERE experience advertised on Windows Phone 8 demonstrated live on iOS.
Second-order effects
- Google faces mounting pressure to ship its own native iOS Maps app, since Nokia now occupies the vacuum its absence created — every day Here Maps sits in the App Store is mindshare ceded to a competitor.
- Apple's maps shortcomings stay under scrutiny, because reviewers and users now have a concrete benchmark installed next to the stock app.
Third-order effects
- If the pattern holds, mapping data decouples from handset makers: Nokia is already distributing HERE via Mozilla and iOS, converting maps from device differentiation into a cross-platform service business.
- Location services consolidate toward a handful of data owners willing to serve every OS, raising the bar for anyone — including Apple — trying to build competitive maps from scratch.
The trend: Map data owners are going cross-platform, with Nokia competing on rivals' devices wherever its own operating system lacks scale.