Windows Phone 7 and 7.5 customers have been using Bing Maps as the primary mapping application. Nokia Lumia customers have been enjoying Nokia Maps & Nokia Drive location based apps which are exclusive to Nokia’s Windows Phone lineup. There’s an unofficial Google Maps client for Windows Phone called gMaps in the Marketplace. But, that need for owning a Nokia Lumia device or downloading gMaps is going to be over with Windows Phone 8.
Windows Phone 8 will include Nokia’s mapping technology built-in to the platform. NAVTEQ Map data will be powering global coverage on Windows Phone 8. It will have built-in offline map support & even Turn-by-Turn directions. Map control for developers will enable third party developers to use these mapping services in their apps.
So, it seems Nokia Lumia’s exclusivity to these mapping technologies will stop after Windows Phone 8 as these mapping services powered by Nokia will run on every Windows Phone 8 device including the ones by other OEMs like HTC, Samsung & Huawei. Bing Maps are pretty powerful in the US & they’re certainly getting better each day but the global reach of Nokia’s NAVTEQ data is world class, indeed.
Image source: The Verge
