If you use a maps app, there’s a very strong possibility it’s Google Maps. The ubiquitous smartphone navigation app is used the world over by iPhone and Android users to find the quickest and most direct route to a destination, whether you’re driving, walking, biking or taking public transport.
iPhone owners are also treated to Apple Maps, which has been a mapping alternative only available to Apple users – until now.
As spotted by Android Police, Apple Maps is now available on Android phones thanks to an update Apple has made to how a version of it can be accessed.
This is where the catch comes in. As noted by 9to5Mac, Apple has made the web version of Apple Maps available to mobile devices including iPhone and iPad via its maps.apple.com web address, which you can also use on a desktop computer to use a web version of Apple Maps.
If you are using an Android phone right now, tap here to see Apple Maps via your phone’s web browser.
But, for the first time, this means you can also access Apple Maps on an Android phone. I tested it using the Chrome app on the Google Pixel 9a and low and behold, Apple Maps loaded straight away, without any need to log in. All I had to do was allow the site to access my location in order to use directions:
If for some reason you’re an Android owner who has bemoaned the lack of an Apple Maps app, you’re still going to be a little disappointed. Access to the service only works via a web browser, and Apple Maps is not available in the Google Play Store as a standalone app.
That said, I added the Chrome shortcut to my home screen and it worked.
That doesn’t mean I’m hopping over to Apple Maps on Android, though. I like using Apple Maps when I am using an iPhone partly because of the excellent 3D mapping of building that comes in handy when navigating across London. Plus it just looks lovely.
Holding and dragging with two fingers on an iPhone usually moves the 2D map into this view, but this does not happen on the Android web version, so that neat feature is missing.
I noticed the web version of Apple Maps, wherever you access it, is still labelled as being in beta. This means it’s a non-final software version that is still being tested, so you might encounter a few performance gremlins.
I wouldn’t hold out hope for a full Apple Maps app for Android on the Play Store, but stranger things have happened. Apple TV, Apple Music and Apple Music Classical are available as official Apple apps on Android phones, suggesting Apple could consider bringing Apple Maps to Android in the future, an approach that runs counter to its steadfast refusal to allow Android users to have access to services such as iMessage.
