Apple today has announced that it will begin conducting ground surveys in Malaysia starting tomorrow on 10 November 2023. The process will collect both imagery and LiDAR data to support the Look Around feature on its Maps app, which has yet to be available in our region. In other words, expect to see Apple-labelled cars with 360-degree cameras roaming the local roads, as well as individuals sporting large white backpacks walking around.
For the uninitiated, the Look Around feature is basically Apple’s equivalent to Google Street View, where users can dive into certain parts of a map to view a 360-degree panoramic view of the location. This was initially introduced as part of the Apple Maps rebuild that was initially rolled out in the US and Europe back in 2020, which gradually expanded to other regions including Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, New Zealand and more later on. Needless to say, the upcoming survey indicates that the feature will eventually see a release in Malaysia, though it won’t be anytime soon.
According to Apple, a complete survey of Malaysia is expected to be completed by mid 2024. The schedule for the deployment of its vehicles and ground staff are as follows:
- Selangor | November 10, 2023 – February 29, 2024
- Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur | November 10, 2023 – February 29, 2024
- Federal Territory of Putrajaya | December 01, 2023 – December 09, 2023
- Negeri Sembilan | March 01, 2024 – March 19, 2024
- Melaka | March 21, 2024 – April 04, 2024
- Johor | April 10, 2024 – June 06, 2024
- Pahang | June 11, 2024 – June 24, 2024
- Terengganu | June 27, 2024 – July 08, 2024
- Kelantan | July 16, 2024 – July 22, 2024
- Perak | March 01, 2024 – April 04, 2024
- Pulau Pinang | April 08, 2024 – April 27, 2024
- Kedah | April 30, 2024 – May 30, 2024
- Perlis | June 01, 2024 – June 05, 2024
- Sabah | January 02, 2024 – March 22, 2024
- Federal Territory of Labuan | March 27, 2024 – April 05, 2024
- Sarawak | April 06, 2024 – July 25, 2024
The company’s ground survey vehicles will mainly cover locations that are accessible by road, while on-foot staff are responsible for areas that are more pedestrian based. The latter will consist of individuals equipped with backpack-styled portable surveying systems, as well as iPads, iPhones or other devices to collect data for map improvement purposes.
Apple adds that it is committed to protecting your privacy while conducting these surveys, and will censor faces, licence plates and other sensitive details from images that are published in Look Around. For those who wish to blur out specific objects such as your own house due to privacy-related reasons, you can actually do so by contacting the company directly via email.
(Source: Apple Malaysia press release / official website)
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