Apple Maps had a rough beginning. Its 2012 launch left it behind Google Maps, but Apple has rebuilt its map data and added tools that can make everyday travel easier. The app now offers detailed 3D buildings, cycling routes, curated guides, a web version and offline maps for entire regions.
With iOS 27, Apple Maps added AI-enhanced Flyover and Local Lists. It can warn you about heavy traffic before you leave, suggest another route and help you find your car after you park. Several of these tools are tucked inside settings, so they are easy to miss.
Apple Maps features hiding in plain sight
Visited Places can remember locations you have been to, as long as the feature is available in your region and turned on. You can keep that history for three months, one year or forever. To check the setting, open Settings > Apps > Maps, go to Location Services and turn on the Visited Places toggle.
Apple Maps also lets you write private notes about places you have visited. Apple says other Apple Maps users will not see those notes, which makes the feature useful for keeping track of restaurants, shops or other locations without sharing your personal reminders.
The app can learn your preferred routes and predicted destinations, then warn you about heavy traffic or suggest alternatives. Find the setting at Settings > Maps > Location, then turn on Preferred Routes and Predicted Destinations. This feature is limited to specific regions, and Apple says route information is not tied to your Apple Account.
Parking help works through CarPlay. When you disconnect from CarPlay and leave your car, Apple Maps drops a pin at the vehicle’s location. Turn it on at Settings > Apps > Maps by enabling Show Parked Location. If you do not use CarPlay, press and hold the Maps icon on the Home Screen and tap Mark Your Location.
Apple Maps can also pass road reports to other drivers. While driving, say, “Siri, there’s an accident ahead” or “there’s something on the road.” Supported reports include accidents, speed checks, heavy traffic and road closures, though availability varies by location.
Keep the iPhone and the road ready
Before relying on new Apple Maps features, check which iOS version your iPhone uses. Open Settings > General > About > iOS Version. Your iPhone should notify you when a new version is available, or you can check by opening Settings > General > Software Update.
The Software Update page shows your current version and adds a Download and Install button when an update is ready. If a major release such as iOS 27 is available, it appears in a separate Also Available section. After downloading, tap Update Now, enter your passcode and accept the terms and conditions. The iPhone reboots to complete the installation.
You can also enable automatic installation. Tap Automatic Updates and switch on Automatically Install. The iPhone handles updates when it has a Wi-Fi connection and enough battery. Manual installation requires at least 20 percent charge. Security updates and hotfixes may take only a couple hundred megabytes, while major iOS upgrades can require several gigabytes, so a fast Wi-Fi network helps.
If Wi-Fi is unreliable, connect the iPhone to a computer with a cable. You may need to tap Trust on the phone during the first connection. On a Mac running macOS 10.15 or newer, open Finder, select the iPhone from the sidebar, choose the General tab, click Check for Update and then click Update. Windows users can install the Apple Devices app, while iTunes still works on an older Mac or Windows computer.
Apple recommends backing up before installing software. On the iPhone, open Settings, tap your name, go to iCloud > iCloud Backup and choose Back Up Now. If iCloud storage is full, use Finder, iTunes or the Apple Devices app to back up to a Mac or Windows PC.
Travel alerts, car privacy and the hidden barometer
Google Maps offers a different kind of driving warning. A capital Z marks a low-emission zone, or LEZ, on your route. When planning a trip into central Amsterdam, the icon appears under the trip time beside “Amsterdam Low Emission Zone on route.” The app warns that vehicles outside the emission standards may receive fines, points drivers toward the city’s official page and advises them to check whether their car qualifies.
Google added these alerts in 2021 for Germany, the Netherlands, France, Spain and the UK on Android and iOS. In 2025, Google said it would expand coverage to more than 1,000 low-emission and low-traffic zones across Europe, including Italy, Sweden and Austria.
Google Maps does not know a vehicle’s emissions class. It only shows that a zone exists; the city’s page explains the requirements. A zone may restrict older diesel cars, charge vehicles above a pollution limit or require a windshield sticker showing the car’s emissions class. Drivers whose cars do not qualify can use an alternative route, park outside the zone and continue by public transit, or ask a rental company whether a vehicle is cleared to enter.
Cars also collect more personal information than many drivers realize. GPS navigation, connected services, telematics systems and manufacturer apps can gather location and other data, which may be shared with insurers, marketing companies and data brokers without explicit driver consent. Mozilla Foundation ranked cars as the worst product category it reviewed for privacy, and in January 2026 the FTC banned General Motors from sharing driver location data with consumer reporting agencies after the company violated its privacy commitments.
Privacy4Cars offers a free Vehicle Privacy Report using a car’s 17-character VIN. The report explains what an automaker and its service providers collect, share and sell. Drivers can also inspect privacy policies, connected-services terms, manuals and dashboard menus for terms such as Data sharing, Connected services, Analytics, Diagnostics, Location Services, Personalization, Voice assistant, Insurance sharing and Driver monitoring.
Pairing a phone with a car can expose contacts, call logs, music and location, though avoiding that connection also removes Android Auto, CarPlay and other features. Disabling tracking may also remove roadside assistance, remote start, smartphone integration or other location-based tools. When selling or trading a vehicle, perform a factory reset, remove the account and vehicle from the manufacturer’s app and notify the manufacturer about the ownership change.
One final tool sits inside many iPhones: a barometer. Since the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus arrived in 2014, most iPhones have included one, with the first-generation iPhone SE as an exception. The sensor detects elevation through air pressure, but weather changes affect pressure too, so apps combine it with GPS altitude and local weather station data.
Apple has no dedicated barometer app, and Apple’s Weather app does not use the built-in sensor. Developers can access pressure and altitude through Core Motion. Barometer & Altimeter & Thermo uses the built-in barometer, GPS and weather station information for calibration and requires iOS 13 or later as of November 2026. My Altitude also uses on-device sensors when available, carries a 4.8 rating from 27,000 ratings and includes adverts in its free version.
Use either app to compare pressure before and after climbing stairs, then return to the same spot for another reading. Weather changes can mimic elevation changes, so do not confuse a storm with a trip uphill.
Based on
- The hidden features every Apple Maps user should know about — engadget.com
- How To Check Which iOS Version Your iPhone Is Running — engadget.com
- What The Circled “Z” On Google Maps Means — engadget.com
- Is Your Car Tracking Your Location? Here’s How To Check And Opt Out — engadget.com
- Your iPhone Has A Built-In Barometer — Here’s How To Use It — engadget.com
