HERE Maps support for Windows 10 to end, Microsoft to bring improved Drive mode to MS Maps

Last August, Nokia sold the mapping side over to Audi/BMW/Mercedes so they can focus on Networks and new technologies.

Nokia Maps then Ovi Maps, then Nokia Maps now HERE Maps was a thing intrinsically connected to Nokia now MS ‘Lumia’ phones. Remember that bought Navteq for 8 billion dollars. It was one of the main decisions behind Nokia not going Android and eventually going WP? When Nokia’s D&S got sold to MS, we thought that HERE would just always be a part of Lumia but that may not be the case. . Pino says.

we made the HERE apps compatible with Windows 10 by using a workaround that will no longer be effective after June 30, 2016. To continue offering the HERE apps for Windows 10 would require us to redevelop the apps from the ground up, a scenario that led to the business decision to remove our apps from the Windows 10 store.

http://360.here.com/2016/03/15/important-information-about-here-apps-on-windows-phone/

This means the HERE apps will no longer work on devices running Windows 10 mobile after June 30, 2016. To prepare for this change, we have also decided to remove the HERE apps from the Windows 10 store on March 29, 2016.

Microsoft will still get to use HERE’s mapping data.

And a member of the Microsoft team says there’ll be improved driving mode from their app.

Their Windows Phone 8 app will remain as it’s deeply integrated in that OS. Folks on reddit are speculating why things are changing. Perhaps now that HERE isn’t Nokia they don’t have the same level of access.

HERE on my Sammy Android is really good. I use a mixture of Waze/gMaps/HERE. For journeys where I know the address, or long journeys, HERE is a must. It simply has the best UI for navigation. gMaps is good for additional POI and Waze is better for finding quicker routes (especially when trying to avoid traffic at work). HERE Maps on Windows 10 was nice in that I could simply pin places to my homescreen, but there’s a work around to do that on Android. Speaking of work arounds, every now and again there are post that indicate apps that have been around on other platforms ‘being worked on’ for Windows based phones. It’s still all a bit sad that years on the platform is still treated as a bottom-class citizen.

I haven’t really used W10 since my 1520 refuses to update past a broken version of W10 from last year. HERE transit was such a lifesaver at Uni.

Source: HERE

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Category: HERE, Windows Phone