Lumia 800: gMaps App? (20th May 2012)

Looking at the reviews of gMaps for Windows Phone 7 and the gMaps screenshots, this looks like something I need. Sadly I wasn’ able to install it on the Lumia at the moment:

  1. I first tried finding it in the Marketplace app.
  2. It isn’t there, predictably.
  3. I closed the Marketplace app.
  4. Returned to the Start Screen.
  5. Clicked on Internet Explorer.
  6. Typed in the URL.
  7. Had typed phome instead of phone so I got a Bing Web Search results page.
  8. The results were total rubbish! Just some domain name registry stuff.
  9. When did Microsoft get so bad at search?!
  10. Held my finger down on the input to get the I-beam cursor.
  11. Dragged down then across until it was just after the errant letter.
  12. Had to do this 2 times as I moves slightly while raising my finger, so the I-beam jumped to the wrong letter.
  13. Pressed Backspace.
  14. Typed n.
  15. Pressed the button.
  16. I again got a search result list instead of it navigating to the website. WHAT?!
  17. At least the 1st result was the site I wanted, so I clicked it.
  18. Weirdly the site started on its Stats page which wasn’t want I wanted at all.
  19. Clicked the Home link.
  20. After the navigation and first bit of main content is the search box.
  21. We all know the search box should be top-right of every page. Except the designers of this website, which is a mobile version.
  22. Typed in gMaps and it found both versions of it as the first results, presented in a pleasing Metro Tiles-like listing.
  23. Clicked the gMaps entry, which is free.
  24. The page loaded.
  25. Clicked the Download for Windows Phone link.
  26. This gave me a native-looking interface with a description about the app, some reviews and the ability to swipe across to other information.
  27. But wait! It’s telling me:

    This application is not available for your device. Press here for more info.

  28. I pressed it and got this native style message box:

    Application not available

    This might be because your phone software needs to be updated, the application is exclusive to a different mobile provider, or the app is not available in your region.

  29. How do I found out which it is? How do I get around this? No clue.
  30. It was dinner time now and a TV show had started, so I abandoned the task and we watched the show.

FAIL.

Resuming the Search for gMaps

The app author’s blog has entries such as got mango? go gMaps 1.12! so technically it should run on this phone.

Clicking the Windows Marketplace link logs me in then redirects to my region. It ends by failing to find the gMaps app, though. Nothing in the search results for gMaps, too.

Elsewhere on the web, articles report gMaps Pro goes Mango with compass support and more so it definitely made it to the Lumia’s general flavour of Windows Phone OS.

Eventually I try looking at the blog homepage of gMaps’ author and right at the top, it explains:

gMaps and gMaps Pro re-branding

Dear gMaps users

gMaps and gMaps Pro were temporary hidden (removed from the Marketplace) due to small re-branding.

Hope you will see refreshed gMaps and gMaps Pro in 1-2 weeks more stable (with fixed settings) and new icon!

Thank you for understanding,
gMaps Team

The date isn’t shown in the design of the blog but the URL says /2012/05/08/ which usually means 8th May 2012. So should just be a matter of time.

  1. Received my Nokia Lumia 800 Cyan!
  2. Sync WLM Calendar via Hotmail
  3. Sync Contacts with WLM via Hotmail
  4. Foreca Weather App by Microsoft
  5. gMaps App?
  6. Google Maps?
  7. Photos & Sharing
  8. Timer
  9. Vodafone
  10. Received my Monster Headphones
  11. Software Update via Zune
  12. Windows Phone 7.8!
  13. New Screen Protector