Tip of the Day
Getting haptic feedback for walking directions in Google Maps
If you want to use your iPhone for getting walking directions around town, both Apple’s and Google’s Maps apps have you covered, although traditionally you’ve pretty much had to either wear earphones or pay close attention to your iPhone to know when and where to turn if you’re traveling through an unfamiliar neighborhood. The good news is that Google Maps has quietly added a haptic feedback feature to its iPhone Maps app that will provide vibrations to let you know not only when to turn, but which direction to turn in: three vibrations for a left turn, two vibrations for a right turn. There are no specific settings in the Google Maps app for this — it’s automatically enabled when you’ve started walking directions — however you will need to ensure that your ringer switch is set to silent and that the in-app “Mute” option is disabled (simply turn down your volume if you don’t want to hear the spoken directions going off in your pocket).
Of course, if you’re planning on getting an Apple Watch, you’ll be able to take advantage of haptic feedback on your wrist from Apple Maps to notify you of upcoming turns. However, Apple hasn’t (yet) seen fit to add this feature to the iPhone itself. For those who either may not be interested in Apple’s wearable, or are simply stuck waiting until later this year for their Apple Watch to arrive, Google Maps can definitely fill in that gap for now.
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