4 ms·

As a consumer, I was just looking for mobile apps. I couldn't find any on this page. Are there any?

by andridk 7y ago

mkj 7y ago
Osmand for Android is pretty good, they should promote it.
- lallysingh 7y ago
  Is there anything that renders the mapps prettier? The difference between osmand and Google maps is jarring.
  - enriquto 7y ago
    What do you find ugly about them? I actually prefer them to google maps! Also, the naming of the streets is often clearer (in google maps, there are too many streets without name, even if you zoom on them). The overall user interface, however, is often much clearer in the google app.
    - kristofferR 7y ago
      It looks like a satnav from the early '00s... No subtlety in the colors at all. Mapbox Streets is an example of good map design: https://www.mapbox.com/maps/streets/ https://www.mapbox.com/maps/streets/
      - nathancahill 7y ago
        Mapbox is built on OSM data and has pretty nice styling. Gaia GPS is one app that provides (among many other things) Mapbox layers on iOS and Android.
        kristofferR 7y ago
        Hehe, I had just edited my comment to mention Mapbox, then I noticed your reply. :)
      - iggldiggl 7y ago
        > Mapbox Streets is an example of good map design: https://www.mapbox.com/maps/streets/ https://www.mapbox.com/maps/streets/ Hmm, doesn't show forests and doesn't show built-up areas, either, which are precisely the things I really dislike about Google's map design, too.
    - chrisseaton 7y ago
      Looks like a cheap old satnav!
      - enriquto 7y ago
        I like this aesthetics. The google colors for maps look sad and bland to me.
    - lallysingh 7y ago
      There's no hierarchy in the coloring. Everything is big and bold and it takes more effort to find the parts I care about. The POI icons are huge. The text for obvious things ("New York City" when I'm staring at just Manhattan) is huge and unnecessary. There are too many shown at the street level. Every block has restaurants and bus stops. They're not labeled, just taking up a huge amount of space. It feels like an old linux desktop, before they got usable. The map is covered in visual clutter that takes too much effort to visually process. I agree that Google Maps needs more street names, but that's my only complaint about the map. That's an easy fix.
  - out_of_protocol 7y ago
    Maps.me looks better, faster but don't have as much features
  - MayeulC 7y ago
    I quite like OSMand's look: much more information, and quite easy to pick features apart. But you can also switch the map style inside the app itself. Navigation is modal in OSMand (you can define your own modes, as well as use the predefined ones), so you can for instance have a hiking mode with a topographic view, or a car mode that hides finer details like trees and cycleways.
  - ce4 7y ago
    You can change the map style if you want to. Settings, configure map, map style. You even can create your own style xml i think.
  - puPoh 7y ago
    Prettier? They are much more clear, detailed and readable than Google maps.
shameempk 7y ago
Maps.me is a good alternative to Osmand. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mapswithme.maps.pro https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mapswithme...
- skinnyasianboi 7y ago
  It's the other way around :) osmand is a good alternative for maps.me because maps.me doesn't care about your privacy and has 20 privacy tracker dependencies installed(check out the exodus privacy app). osmand has zero
  - Mediterraneo10 7y ago
    As mentioned elsewhere, F-Droid hosts a version of Maps.me that is ad- and tracker-free.
markosaric 7y ago
I've been using OsmAnd+ on F-droid (Android). It's great and has many options. Everything works offline. It takes a bit of time to get used to it coming from Google Maps but it's worth a try. Search has been improving recently but still lacks behind Google. Public transport and reviews are missing too.
mtmail 7y ago
There are many. I guess the switch2org authors didn't want to copy https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Software/Mobile https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Software/Mobile https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Comparison_of_iOS_applications https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Comparison_of_iOS_applic... https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Comparison_of_Android_applications https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Comparison_of_Android_ap...

As a consumer, I was just looking for mobile apps. I couldn't find any on this page. Are there any?

mkj 7y ago

Osmand for Android is pretty good, they should promote it.

lallysingh 7y ago
Is there anything that renders the mapps prettier? The difference between osmand and Google maps is jarring.
- enriquto 7y ago
  What do you find ugly about them? I actually prefer them to google maps! Also, the naming of the streets is often clearer (in google maps, there are too many streets without name, even if you zoom on them). The overall user interface, however, is often much clearer in the google app.
  - kristofferR 7y ago
    It looks like a satnav from the early '00s... No subtlety in the colors at all. Mapbox Streets is an example of good map design: https://www.mapbox.com/maps/streets/ https://www.mapbox.com/maps/streets/
    - nathancahill 7y ago
      Mapbox is built on OSM data and has pretty nice styling. Gaia GPS is one app that provides (among many other things) Mapbox layers on iOS and Android.
      - kristofferR 7y ago
        Hehe, I had just edited my comment to mention Mapbox, then I noticed your reply. :)
    - iggldiggl 7y ago
      > Mapbox Streets is an example of good map design: https://www.mapbox.com/maps/streets/ https://www.mapbox.com/maps/streets/ Hmm, doesn't show forests and doesn't show built-up areas, either, which are precisely the things I really dislike about Google's map design, too.
  - chrisseaton 7y ago
    Looks like a cheap old satnav!
    - enriquto 7y ago
      I like this aesthetics. The google colors for maps look sad and bland to me.
  - lallysingh 7y ago
    There's no hierarchy in the coloring. Everything is big and bold and it takes more effort to find the parts I care about. The POI icons are huge. The text for obvious things ("New York City" when I'm staring at just Manhattan) is huge and unnecessary. There are too many shown at the street level. Every block has restaurants and bus stops. They're not labeled, just taking up a huge amount of space. It feels like an old linux desktop, before they got usable. The map is covered in visual clutter that takes too much effort to visually process. I agree that Google Maps needs more street names, but that's my only complaint about the map. That's an easy fix.
- out_of_protocol 7y ago
  Maps.me looks better, faster but don't have as much features
- MayeulC 7y ago
  I quite like OSMand's look: much more information, and quite easy to pick features apart. But you can also switch the map style inside the app itself. Navigation is modal in OSMand (you can define your own modes, as well as use the predefined ones), so you can for instance have a hiking mode with a topographic view, or a car mode that hides finer details like trees and cycleways.
- ce4 7y ago
  You can change the map style if you want to. Settings, configure map, map style. You even can create your own style xml i think.
- puPoh 7y ago
  Prettier? They are much more clear, detailed and readable than Google maps.

shameempk 7y ago

Maps.me is a good alternative to Osmand. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mapswithme.maps.pro https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mapswithme...

skinnyasianboi 7y ago
It's the other way around :) osmand is a good alternative for maps.me because maps.me doesn't care about your privacy and has 20 privacy tracker dependencies installed(check out the exodus privacy app). osmand has zero
- Mediterraneo10 7y ago
  As mentioned elsewhere, F-Droid hosts a version of Maps.me that is ad- and tracker-free.

markosaric 7y ago

I've been using OsmAnd+ on F-droid (Android). It's great and has many options. Everything works offline. It takes a bit of time to get used to it coming from Google Maps but it's worth a try. Search has been improving recently but still lacks behind Google. Public transport and reviews are missing too.

mtmail 7y ago

There are many. I guess the switch2org authors didn't want to copy https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Software/Mobile https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Software/Mobile https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Comparison_of_iOS_applications https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Comparison_of_iOS_applic... https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Comparison_of_Android_applications https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Comparison_of_Android_ap...