Photo: Bogdan Popa/autoevolution
I don't know about you, but I've never been a big of Waze's cartoonish interface. While it gets the job done, I think it's cluttered and makes observing important things harder than a clean, simple, and minimal navigation UI.
I'm not saying Google Maps is perfect, but its cleaner look makes navigation more convenient and straightforward, especially if you don't care about other users running the app, moods, and unnecessary reports.
However, one of the biggest differences between Google Maps and Waze is the support for satellite maps. If you're part of the Apple ecosystem, you certainly know how desirable satellite maps are in this side of the tech space. Apple Maps users have been drooling over satellite maps for years – they are available for exploration but are automatically disabled when navigation is enabled.
Google Maps uses a different approach and allows satellite maps at all times. Waze doesn't support a satellite view, but many users believe it should.
While I think that satellite maps would make Waze's crowded UI even more confusing, the company has no intention of adding such an update to the app.
In an old response to feedback in this regard, Waze explained that it wants to offer "a smooth and simple driving experience," and a satellite mode wouldn't align with this approach. I won't comment on the "smooth and simple driving experience" promise because that's not exactly what you get in Waze, but the company further explains that satellite maps should only be used for exploration and panning offline.
It wouldn't make sense in Waze, they explain, as the current map layer available in the app provides drivers "with the right amount of information needed to get to places."
The company explained that "we're not going to move in that direction in the foreseeable future," so a satellite mode in Waze is not even on the table.
Meanwhile, if you don't mind using two apps simultaneously, combining Google Maps with Waze is the best way to get a complete navigation experience behind the wheel. I recently started using both on CarPlay, with Google Maps running on the screen and Waze remaining in the background for traffic reports.
It's the easiest way to get the best of both, as this setup allows me to enjoy Google Maps' cleaner UI (without other Wazers, moods, and everything else that I don't think improves my experience with the app) and still get traffic reports from Waze. Whenever I receive an alert, it appears in a banner at the bottom of the screen, so I don't feel I'm missing out on anything. Google Maps also has a satellite layer, and you can enable it in your car even if you run the app side by side with Waze.
However, one of the biggest differences between Google Maps and Waze is the support for satellite maps. If you're part of the Apple ecosystem, you certainly know how desirable satellite maps are in this side of the tech space. Apple Maps users have been drooling over satellite maps for years – they are available for exploration but are automatically disabled when navigation is enabled.
Google Maps uses a different approach and allows satellite maps at all times. Waze doesn't support a satellite view, but many users believe it should.
While I think that satellite maps would make Waze's crowded UI even more confusing, the company has no intention of adding such an update to the app.
In an old response to feedback in this regard, Waze explained that it wants to offer "a smooth and simple driving experience," and a satellite mode wouldn't align with this approach. I won't comment on the "smooth and simple driving experience" promise because that's not exactly what you get in Waze, but the company further explains that satellite maps should only be used for exploration and panning offline.
It wouldn't make sense in Waze, they explain, as the current map layer available in the app provides drivers "with the right amount of information needed to get to places."
The company explained that "we're not going to move in that direction in the foreseeable future," so a satellite mode in Waze is not even on the table.
Meanwhile, if you don't mind using two apps simultaneously, combining Google Maps with Waze is the best way to get a complete navigation experience behind the wheel. I recently started using both on CarPlay, with Google Maps running on the screen and Waze remaining in the background for traffic reports.
It's the easiest way to get the best of both, as this setup allows me to enjoy Google Maps' cleaner UI (without other Wazers, moods, and everything else that I don't think improves my experience with the app) and still get traffic reports from Waze. Whenever I receive an alert, it appears in a banner at the bottom of the screen, so I don't feel I'm missing out on anything. Google Maps also has a satellite layer, and you can enable it in your car even if you run the app side by side with Waze.
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