Cosman

Q: Apple Maps not working right

I have had bad luck using Maps.  I don’t mean wrong directions, I mean nonfunctioning.  This has happened many times.

 

I started a trip to the beach, three hours away.  I entered the start location (“current loction”) and the destination and pressed START.  The voice directed me out of my driveway and then disappeared with no more voice commands.  Shortly, the screen went blank (hybernation?) I knew 90% of the way, so I thought I would wake it up when I got close. 

 

When I went to wake it up, the screen would go blank every 60 seconds or so.  The map did not move, but the car dot would move off the screen.  The miles indicator at the top did not change.  If I pressed the arrow at the upper right, it would jump to the next screen and repeat the previous steps.

 

I pulled off the side of the road (Interstate) twice to try to get it functioning.  Finally, I cancelled the Maps and told Siri to take me to the address at the beach.  This worked the best with the conventional moving road map and turns indicated.  However the voice prompts quit after two and never resumed.

 

All I want is a simple Garmin-like map program that gives me a moving map and turn instruction, preferably with audible voice commands.

 

Either I am doing something wrong, or Maps is flawed.

iPhone 6, iOS 8.1

Posted on Aug 23, 2015 4:04 PM

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Q: Apple Maps not working right

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  • Helpful answers

  • by judysings,

    judysings judysings Aug 25, 2015 9:16 AM in response to Cosman
    Community Specialists
    Aug 25, 2015 9:16 AM in response to Cosman

    Good Morning, Cosman - 

    Thanks for letting us know the issue you are having with the Maps application.  The first resource below will explain how to use the Maps application.  Take a glance at it to make sure we are on the same page.   

    How to use Maps on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch - Apple Support
    https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202570

    It sounds like your issue is really related to the Maps app losing track of your location.  This resource will provide some troubleshooting steps to consider:

    Get help with Maps on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch - Apple Support

    https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT203080


     

  • by Cosman,

    Cosman Cosman Aug 25, 2015 9:57 AM in response to judysings
    Level 1 (18 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 25, 2015 9:57 AM in response to judysings

    Judy,

     

    Thanks for the reply.  I have read the How to use Maps… document and don’t find much that applies to my situation.  I did the steps in my driveway, entering beginning and ending locations.  It showed me the complete trip map with miles and time.  I pressed start and started driving.  The voice directed me out of my driveway and to the first turn up the street.  Then it went silent.

     

    I live in a fairly large city with a high density of cell towers and no signal problems. 

     

    As I continued to drive in town, I noticed the map did not move.  It was in some mode other than the GPS driving mode.  It showed a static map mode matching the List Steps instructions.  The screen did not look like the driving mode - more like a map to the next turn.  It had a round circle representing the car, which would move along the road and off the screen.  There was an street direction arrow in the upper right corner.  If I pressed it, the map section would change to the next one.  Kind of like the old Google maps where you could print each step of the journey. The screen would go dark every minute or so - whatever the screen saver setting/sleep was. 

     

    I don’t know what this mode is called and I cannot reproduce it sitting in my office.  If the phone lost its location information, then there was some bug in the phone code, since I was in a well represented cell area.

     

    As I mentioned earlier, I stopped on the road several times trying to get the Maps program into the right mode. I got the same response trying to repeat the keyboard entry method in the How to use Maps instructions.  The only thing seemed to work was when I envoked Siri and told her to take me to the beach address.  After that, it worked correctly, except the voice directions quit after one or two directions.  This was in a much less populated area where the cell phone density is much less that the start location and it maintaned the location signal just fine for the last part of the trip.

     

    Conclusions:  I don’t know what I could have done wrong.

    The cell signal doesn’t seem to be the problem

    The phone seemed to be in the wrong mode - maps, not directions.  I don’t know how to put it in the maps mode.

    The voice commands stopped after one or two (this always happens, even when the directions continue correctly)

    Several Maps restarts did not change the behavior

    Using Siri got it in the right mode with failing voice commands

  • by judysings,Helpful

    judysings judysings Aug 25, 2015 11:08 AM in response to Cosman
    Community Specialists
    Aug 25, 2015 11:08 AM in response to Cosman

    Hi Cosman,

    After you read the basic instructions for how to use Maps, did you try the steps in the troubleshooting article?  Checking the date/time settings, the location services settings, etc. can affect the accuracy of the application.  I'm assuming you are using a cellular connection vs. Wi-Fi?  If your screen goes black you may need to change your auto-lock settings.  

    Sleep/Wake button - iPhone
    http://help.apple.com/iphone/8/#/iph3bd014f9

    Your iPhone has a setting that will put the iPhone to sleep after a certain peri od of time.  It is called Auto-Lock.  You can change the setting from 1 minute up to 5 minutes, or change the setting  to Never, so that the iPhone will not go to sleep unless you press the Sleep/Wa ke button.   If you would like to adjust this setting,  on your home screen tap Settings > General > Auto-Lock.

     

    The section of the iPhone User Guide which explains the ins and outs of the Maps app is in the link below.  

     

    iPhone User Guide - Maps - Chapter 15 - Page 102
    https://manuals.info.apple.com/MANUALS/1000/MA1565/en_US/iphone_user_guide.pdf

    1. Get more info

       

      Get info about a location. Tap a pin to display its banner, then tap . Info might include Yelp reviews and photos, a phone number (tap to call it), a webpage link, directions, and more.

       

      To share the location, add the location to your Favorites, or use another app you install, tap . See Share from apps on page 37.

       

      Get directions

       

      Note: To get directions, iPhone must be connected to the Internet. To get directions involving your current location, Location Services must also be on.

       

      Get directions. Tap , enter the starting and ending locations, then tap Route. Or choose a location or a route from the list, if available. Tap to select driving or walking directions, or to use an app for public or other modes of transportation.

       

      If a location banner is showing, directions to that location from your current location appear. To get other directions, tap the search field.

       

      If multiple routes appear, tap the one you want to take.

       
         
      •  

        Hear turn-by-turn directions: Tap Start.

          

        Maps follows your progress and speaks turn-by-turn directions to your destination. To show or hide the controls, tap the screen.

          

        If iPhone auto-locks, Maps stays onscreen and continues to announce instructions. You can also open another app and continue to get turn-by-turn directions. To return to Maps, tap the banner across the top of the screen.

          

        With turn-by-turn directions, night mode automatically adjusts the screen image for easier viewing at night.

         
      •  
      •  

        See the route overview: Tap Overview.

         
      •  
      •  

        View the directions as a list: Tap List Steps.

         
      •  
      •  

        Stop turn-by-turn directions: Tap End. Or ask Siri to “stop navigating.”

          

        Get directions from your current location. Tap on the banner of your destination. Tap to select driving or walking directions, or to use an app for public or other modes of transportation.

          

        Use Siri. Say something like:

         
       
         
      •  

        “Give me directions home”

         
      •  
      •  

        “Directions to my dad’s work”

         
      •  
      •  

        “What’s my ETA?”

         
      •  
      •  

        “Find a gas station” 

         

    If you still are unable to figure out what is going on with the Maps application, perhaps one of our technical advisors can troubleshoot this a little further for you.  Here's the link to initiate that support:

    iPhone - Contact Support - Apple Support

     

    Take care,

  • by Cosman,

    Cosman Cosman Aug 25, 2015 11:46 AM in response to judysings
    Level 1 (18 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 25, 2015 11:46 AM in response to judysings

    Judy,

     

    So far, I don’t see anything that tells me what I did wrong, but I appreciate all the help.

     

    I still don’t know what mode the iPhone 6 was in.  I don’t see any mention in the lit about it showing page by page instructions and a moving dot for the car, which goes off screen, requiring you to select the next page.

     

    I didn’t know I had to disable the Auto-Lock setting to use the Maps application.  When I used Siri and it worked correctly, (other than voice) the screen stayed on continuously for ½ hr or so as we went to the final desitnation.  Am I supposed toggle Auto-Lock on and off to use Maps?  That would be a pain. 

     

    Since that episode is gone, I can’t reproduce the problem sitting in my office.  I will have to wait until I can use it again (i.e. going home) to see if it will work correctly.