TomTom Flames OpenStreetMap 345
An anonymous reader writes "TomTom Navigation has a recently launched article on what they call the 'negative aspects' of open data projects such as OpenStreetMap. As there are no hard facts and details to the studies they refer, the OSM community identified this release as classic 'Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt.'"
We're better because we do the same thing! (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Why would it need studies? (Score:5, Insightful)
They may be "built using unreliable hardware and software", but expensive commercial maps are apparently often pretty badly wrong - including "dangerous" things like mislabelled one-way streets, roads that head into lakes, and other errors that could cause serious accidents, many of them unfixed for years!
Who cares, except Captain Obvious? (Score:5, Insightful)
The motives are obvious, the critique is not very specific, everyone who is using OSM does realize their limitations, and anyone who is using mapping software and gets in trouble because they prioritize the mapping data over what they can see with their own eyes should not be on the road anyway.
Too bad for Tomtom, but they stopped to be relevant quite a few years ago.
Re:Why would it need studies? (Score:5, Insightful)
"In some places, like where I live ... However, Bing Maps is the best one of them with most information"
And where is that place where you live? Sorry, I get suspicious if a newish user account promotes Bing like that.
Please keep thinking and watch the road(signs). (Score:5, Insightful)
"Many drivers rely heavily on satellite navigation for precise directions, and mapping errors can be extremely dangerous, particularly in the case of one-way streets."
I see people using these commercial quality navigation units every day and still they take stupid actions like driving into a oneway street and making last second turns (right... left, NO RIGHT swerving all over the road) while spending more time looking at their statnav than on the road. Turn by turn navigation is dangerous by itself when used blindly no matter what maps are being used, they induce a near total lack of anticipation of traffic.
pretty tame "fud" (Score:5, Insightful)
Basically they say that they provide more "quality control" than OSM, and that people should check their electronic map, this is not false...
The arguments are very similar to the ones the various encyclopedias offered (and still offer if they haven't disapeared yet) against wikipedia.
But they do recognize value in OSM, so I guess they are more into thinking how in the future leverage OSM, after all the real competition to tomtom is not OSM but google map or bing map on the mobile phones....
They should focus on lowering the price of their hardware, who will pay at least 150€ for a satnav, when they can have something similar for 19€ on an android phone.
(since they need the phone subscription anyway, and yes the tomtom is probably "better", but 130€ buys quite a lot of gasoline, even at current prices).
Maybe they'll bring out a 50€ android + osm based navigator, and offer some fun "add ons"
Re:Why would it need studies? (Score:5, Insightful)
No kidding (Score:5, Insightful)
They should worry more about Google maps/navigation. You get a smartphone with that on it, and suddenly a Tomtom doesn't seem like a good buy anymore. My mom has a Tomtom because she could practically get lost driving on a straight road, and it has worked well. However it has nothing on my smartphone with Google on it. Reason is that the smartphone can (and does) fetch map data in realtime. I don't have to remember to load maps for where I'm going and they'll be as up to date as Google has at the moment.
In terms of other features like plotting a route talking you through things and so on they both work fine.
That's their real threat. Anyone who has a newish Android smartphone already has this, and I have to presume it is available on all other platforms. It's free and it works well. You don't have to remember to bring anything with you, other than your phone which you probably already have. Heck even if you don't have the app you can download it in the field.
Between that and cars with built in nav systems, I can't see them having a market for much longer. Stand alone GPS units are going to be the kind of things that hikers use, if you are on a roadway your car, phone, or both will already have you covered.
Re:Why would it need studies? (Score:5, Insightful)
The problem with open maps is that too many can edit them.
The problem with closed maps is that too few can edit them.
Offline maps still vital (Score:5, Insightful)
Reason is that the smartphone can (and does) fetch map data in realtime.
Yes it does, which is great right up until you are in an area with really poor data.
On any smartphone I will always have at least one offline mapping app, so that I can find things around me (or how to get out) even if data connections fail.
You can alleviate that to some degree with caching (which Google Maps does) but it still doesn't help if you want to search for something new or run into an area the caching did not anticipate.
Re:No kidding (Score:5, Insightful)
Sometimes it is useful to have a local copy of a map with you, incase you are in an area with no cell coverage or a foreign country where roaming charges would make using online maps uneconomical.
Good ol' TomTom (Score:5, Insightful)
I bought a WinCE PDA with TomTom back when they first appeared.
I later got a new version of the TT software for the same PDA.
Later I bought a TomTom device (still a WinCE PDA, but only running TT).
Then I bought an Android phone and... TT didn't have an app, so I got a different brand.
TT's enemy isn't some open mapping service, it's their own failure to adapt to the changing world around them.
Re:Please keep thinking and watch the road(signs). (Score:2, Insightful)
Tomtom can get stuffed (Score:5, Insightful)
The one thing that sticks in my mind about Tomtom: when they got sued by Microsoft, the open source community rallied round. But did they ever bother making the minimal effort to distribute a Linux client, perhaps to show appreciation if nothing else? Appreciation not just for the support they got against Microsoft but for giving them a free platform to build their business on? No. Too much to ask, apparently. As far as I am concerned, Tomtom can fuck themselves.
Oh, and when I lost my Tomtom I did not replace it, I bought a Garmin.
Screw you, TomTom (Score:5, Insightful)
I've made the mistake of buying U.S. maps from TomTom twice. Fooled me twice, so shame on me.
In both cases, I needed TomTom to get me to hotels in the south east, where the hotels are located on roads that were created about 3-4 years ago. Google Maps had the roads, but even the most recent update of TomTom did not.
So I emailed TomTom and I was like, hey, your maps are really stale regarding this address. Their response? "Here's how you can correct our maps."
Excuse me, but I'm not paying ~ $50 for the privilege of correcting your maps. If I take the time to show you where your maps are wrong, and I can point your customer support people to the correct data on Google Maps, you do the damn work of updating your fscking maps.
I've found TomTom quite useful over the past few years, but I really can't see continuing my business relationship with them.
Re:Screw you, TomTom (Score:4, Insightful)
Your problem is likely not with their maps, but with their business model. Tomtom earns money by selling map UPDATES.
Re:Why would it need studies? (Score:5, Insightful)
The problem with open maps is that too many can edit them.
The problem with closed maps is that too few can edit them.
TomToms problem with open maps is that they can't charge for them, and they compete with their product. This is just marketing BS AKA lies.
Re:Why would it need studies? (Score:5, Insightful)
Navteq uses...
Navteq is the company that provides maps and mapping services. When you hear names like "tomtom", "garmin" and so on, these companies do not actually provide maps. They provide UI shells and minor map modifications but licence actual maps either from navteq or tele atlas (two biggest providers of mapping data in the world). Navteq and tele atlas in turn get their maps from their cartographers, one of whom you just mentioned.
The title should be: TomTom fears OpenStreetMaps (Score:2, Insightful)
The title should be: TomTom fears OpenStreetMaps
And by FUDing on them TomTom just really said that OpenStreetMaps are serious competitor and TomTom can soon be out of the business.
Re:We're better because we do the same thing! (Score:2, Insightful)
if one mapper says "this road is called Market Street" and another says "this road is called Market Road", we just go and look at the street sign.
The city plan says Market Street, the street sign incorrectly labels it as Market Road, if you go to the other end of the street you will see a sign with the correct name.
Edit wars will happen whenever there are two ore more people that can't be argued with. The rest of us are just happy that the road wasn't called Aluminium Street.