Apple Maps launches on the web in beta — here’s where to find it

It’s been a long time coming, but Apple has finally decided to launch Apple Maps on the web. Here's where to find it.

JimMin

Jul 25, 2024 - 21:05

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Apple

It’s been a long time coming, but Apple has finally launched Apple Maps on the web.

Currently in beta, Apple Maps on the web is compatible with Safari and Chrome browsers on Mac and iPad, as well as Chrome and Edge browsers on Windows PCs. Support for additional browsers and platforms, as well as languages other than English, will be expanded over time, Apple said in a message on Wednesday.

You can try out Apple Maps on the web right now..

Up till now, Apple Maps had only been available as an app for Apple devices like the iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and Mac computers, so this week’s expansion to the web gives it much wider availability.

At the current time, Apple Maps on the web offers directions for driving and walking, but not public transportation or cycling. Also unavailable in the beta version is Look Around, Apple’s equivalent of Google’s Street View, which lets you explore neighborhoods at street level through high-quality, panoramic imagery. We can expect these missing features to be added over time.

The beta version of Apple Maps on the web includes links to useful information for stores, restaurants, bars, and so on, including photos, hours, ratings, and reviews. You can also take actions like ordering food directly from the Maps place card.

Satellite views of locations around the world are also available, along with standard and hybrid views.

Developers can link out to Apple Maps on the web, so their users can get driving directions, see detailed place information, and more, Apple said.

Apple Maps launched in 2012, but the tool clearly wasn’t ready for prime time. The early rollout turned into a major public relations disaster for the company, CEO Tim Cook, who was new in the job at the time, felt compelled to make a public apology. But over the years, Apple has invested heavily in building out Apple Maps and today it’s a powerful alternative to Google Maps.

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Apple shares new Vision Pro ad just days before launch

A woman wearing the Vision Pro on a flight.

Hello Apple Vision Pro

Apple has dropped a new Vision Pro ad just a few days before the launch of the new device. You can watch it above.

40 years ago today, Apple launched something as audacious as the Vision Pro

A classic Apple Macintosh shows a friendly hello on-screen.

Today marks 40 years since Apple released the very first Mac, upending the entire computer industry and sowing the seeds for four decades of success for the company. Dubbed the Macintosh 128K, the device was an unprecedented success for Apple, and it quickly became one of the most important Macs ever. It also has curious parallels to the company’s situation today.

It's easy to look back now with fondness at the impact the product made -- a familiar piece of tech history that still undergirds so much of our current technology. But at the time, it was the start of something new. A bold, risky, and unprecedented leap forward. It's hard not to make comparisons to the Vision Pro, which officially launches just next week. But will we look back in 40 years at the Vision Pro with the same kind of reverence? Perhaps, but only if Apple learns the right lesson from its own history.
A computing revolution
1984 Apple's Macintosh Commercial (HD)

Intel ‘disgustingly’ rejected some faulty CPU returns, YouTuber says

Intel processors next to each other.

Intel has finally broken its silence on the instability issues plaguing 13th-gen and 14th-gen CPUs over the last few months, but it seems we've only gotten a half answer to the problem. Gamer's Nexus posted a video breaking down what the YouTube channel called "Intel's biggest fuckup" to date and showcasing how the problem goes beyond the reasoning Intel shared this week.

If you're not up to speed, Intel posted a message on its forums pinning blame for instability on improper voltage requests within the CPU microcode. Basically, the processor was getting improper power, leading to instability and degradation within the CPU. That's not the only problem with 13th-gen and 14th-gen CPUs, however. Some CPUs are impacted by a manufacturing defect that isn't fixable with a microcode update, and Intel didn't address that in its public statement.