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Turn-by-Turn GPS Navigation Ready, but Blocked by Apple's SDK Terms
An MSNBC in an article titled "Voice-based GPS is slow to come to iPhone 3G" discusses the lack of Apps in the iTunes App store that support voice navigation on the iPhone 3G, and more important, details conversations with several GPS manufacturers regarding their plans to develop turn by turn GPS solutions for the iPhone. Many of the developers were mum, but TomTom reiterated their plans for iPhone support:
"We have made our navigation system run on the iPhone; it looks good and works very well," said Dutch-based company TomTom, in a statement to msnbc.com. "We will have to look more closely to Apple's strategy before we can say more about what kind of opportunities this will bring us."
We reported previously that Apple may developing their own solution, and recent beta releases of the iPhone OS 2.1 contained references for enhanced GPS support needed for these apps. Apple's Greg Joswiak was quoted as describing this navigational Apps as "complicated."
If TomTom already has its application up and running to their satisfaction on an iPhone, why don't we see it for sale in the AppStore? Unfortunately, no one is answering that question right now.
"...and recent beta releases of the iPhone OS 2.1 contained references for enhanced GPS support needed for these apps."
From everything I have read, the only things added (and now removed) are some calls for heading, speed, etc. These are all functions that can easily be derived from the base calls to get your long/lat. Any company writing navigation software already has highly optimized version of these calls. I doubt anyone writing GPS apps would use these derived functions - instead they would bring their own libraries of such functions to bear.... Those are more useful for someone trying to write a quick app that needs better location info than just long/lat.
I really wish people would stop talking about these additions to the SDK as somehow being the piece needed to make true turn-by-turn navigation possible!
It's free for all phones, is it going to be free for iPhone too?