"Waze" Navigation App for Smartphones

[Silver Fox]

I have noticed a number of people now using the free App "Waze" for navigation on their smart phones and they seem very happy with it.
Apparently one can enter traffic conditions, road hazards, accidents, speed traps etc "on the fly" as you travel and this information is immediately available to all users in the area. It uses Google maps and has the facility to edit maps if errors are found.
Have any forum members had any experience of this system ?

[Jan Horn]

I had a look at the Waze site. Here is a link to their T&C and privacy policy

https://www.waze.com/legal/privacy/

There are a few things that concern me.

It will send information to waze while you drive regarding location etc.
It will also use data stored on your phone.
It seem more than a mobile social media then a navigation proper system.
Using online maps is always risky especially when you are in an area of bad cell coverage.
It is always a bad idea to have some distraction while driving.
There will be a cost implication

[fugglefeet]

Hi all,

I have been using Waze now for a good few months (my Nuvi 1410 has died on me as a result of a aged battery). I have found it to be accurate with the ETA, live traffic reports, road hazards and traffic congestion especially here in the greater Johannesburg. I now use it on a daily basis for my work commute and to my customers, and back home at the end of the day. My suggestion is to use common sense when using or relying on any form of navigation device. Waze has also at times caught me off guard and I ended up in unavoidable traffic jams. The latest feature allows the end user to submit logs to the Waze server and the data is used to update the maps and driving habits. I have seen instances where Waze has on the fly changed routes to avoid areas of congestion and making getting to the destination on time possible. My next step would be to see how much data the app uses in a month and provide feedback to the forum members. As with each new update of anything, there are new features with a possibility of new caveats to take into account. As the wording on alcoholic beverage advertisements read:- "Enjoy responsibly".

Darryl

P.S. - I have managed to find some data usage statistics from my Android based phone for Waze. For the period:-

13 Feb - 12 Mar 2018 40.52MB
13 Mar - 12 Apr 2018 41.64MB
13 Apr - 12 May 2018 80.96MB
13 May - 12 Jun 2018 188MB
13 Jun - Now 134MB

So since I am using it more intensely, there is an increase in data usage.

[Phillip Coetser]

Hi guys, Phillip.
GPS technology has freed us from the tyranny of the printed, folding map, but at the same time, it has made us slaves to our cellular provider's data plan. Many of the leading GPS and mapping app providers, including Waze, Apple Maps, and Google Maps, will only work if you're connected to a network. These services aren't preloaded with map information. Rather they send relevant maps to your phone on the fly, over the air. (Google Maps has limited offline map support, allowing for downloads of maps that are a maximum of 50km x 50km square, which is fine for city walks but insufficient for even a modest day trip.)
One interesting point is the relationship between Waze and Google Maps. Yes, Google did buy Waze a few years ago. And that has caused many people to think that both maps are the same thing. ... Google said it tracks speeds in traffic based on what the real traffic flow is, not just whatever the posted speed limit is.
So, by using these apps on your smartphone, make sure that you have sufficient data.
Regards.

[Phillip Coetser]

Hi guys, Phillip. I've installed the Waze app. on my phone, and I must admit that this is a very powerful app. and I assume this will be the case with all other similar apps. Once the app. is installed and activated on your phone, you can immediately see, how many "wazers", are active, (in my area at that specific time was 3805 wazers) and how many reports have been logged. I've attached a few screenshots, of a typical Monday morning in my area. My opinion, it looks like the days of the ordinary Pnd's are numbered.
Regards.

[Jan Horn]

Quite impressive. I have both Here Maps and Google maps on my cell and must admit it helped me finding my way in a unfamiliar town twice where the directions given to me ended up getting lost. The fist time it were trying to find the provibial hospital were I only thought of using the cellafter driving around in circles for a while.

On the other hand we once met an eldery couple at an overnight guest farm in the Freestate just north of the Cape Free State border next to the N1. They were on their way form Underberg in KZN to George. They lost their way in the Transkei when the gps on their phone stopped working, They left Underberg at 05:00 that morning and decided to find a palce to sleep at 19:00 that night with still some 600km to go. But then again that could have (would have) happened with a PND or even paper maps as well