If you’re new to the world of fitness apps, you may well come across MapMyRun or MapMyRide as one of the most popular apps around. Don’t be fooled into thinking that just because more people have downloaded it, it must be better than the alternatives. As someone who has used this service, the following summarises my reasons for moving away from it, apart from the obvious – there are much better alternatives out there!
1. Ads
The website hassles you with ads when you want to create routes, forcing you to wait, or click past them. No big deal perhaps, but others like ridewithgps.com and strava don’t hassle their users in this way. It’s just a deliberate strategy to annoy people into paying for the premium product.
2. Whose data is it anyway?
This is my biggest gripe. When you upload your gpx files to mapmyride, you can view a map and the stats just like on any other similar site. BUT – if you ever want to export the data again, it will not include any time data, only the route itself. This means you’ll get no stats, no recognition of any segments in Strava, nothing. The decision to restrict data export in this way is a silly attempt to keep their users, but ironically will be one of the main reasons that people will leave.
3. Your phone
In terms of recording your rides, it’s a smartphone app, so the chances are that the battery life will be awful when compared to a dedicated GPS unit like a Garmin. Check out 10 reasons to ditch phone apps and get a proper GPS for your bike . The app doesn’t run well on lower spec android phones, and crashed on me a few times. If you have to use a phone to record your GPS tracks, use something lighter like MyTracks instead.
4. The unsocial network
Their attempt at socialising the experience fails miserably. Yes, you can look at other people’s routes, but in a world of shiny Strava segments, mapmyride can only seem to offer lame leaderboards which don’t display anything other than your username and how long the route took you. Let’s be honest, Strava has it nailed.
5. Can you believe it?
They just brought out MapMyDogWalk.
No shit.
Well, probably lots – better take some baggies.
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/gabrielamadeus/5737268275/
what MMR doesnt have is a world full of idiots chasing 200m 0.00004% downhill KOM sections and then using digital epo to boost them.
started off great, now its full of ex golfers…..
Haha, oh dear. Is it that bad in some areas? Can’t say it’s an issue with my local Stravarati
I agree it sucks! Constant crashes
Strava parses the data from you watch and alters it. I am just about ready to give up on Strava. They admit in their own forums that they use their own algorhythms to determine distance, pace, and time. Mapmyride or run seems to match my watch with seconds and the KMs are usually accurate. I agree the social side sucks, though.
Strava isn’t all that great either. It’s better but not the “one app to end all bike apps” that it could be.
For one thing, it’s pretty awful as a bike computer. Maymyride iis actually better as a bike computer. The screen stays on and it displays useful stats. But maymyride falls short as a route navigation tool, this is where Strava is better, if only the screen stayed on. Neither have voice prompts for navigation.
I’m still looking for the proper bike computer which would have this features:
– useable cycle computer. Similar to the dedicated ones, like Cateye. After all, if my phone is mounted on my handle bar, why do i need a cateye?
– Tracking my rides properly. Mapmyride often has gaps when signal is lost. It’s not that hard to figure out the speed and distance between signal loss and signal reacquisition.
– Route navigation. I can create a route, or use one from maymyride or strava or anything else. Then when I head out, i can load the route and it’ll guide me via voice and on screen if need be.
– Camera light: Blink the LED to catch attention. Doesn’t replace a real bike light but it can be effective on dark trails.
– Bluetooth and ant+ sensors as usual.
– Media controller: so i can control music, podcasts, audiobooks etc.
The best cycle computer I’ve found is called URBAN BIKER. But it doesn’t have the routes, mapping, tracking that mapmyride or strava does.
Try runnerup instead.
Well I think I’m late to the party. But I have to say something about the Authors conflict of interest in this article. 5 reasons you suck at pointing out why an app sucks.
1. Everyone is different no two people are alike. Therefore their will always be multiple apps to decided from. Competition is what makes us better! And I don’t mind the ads at all for the free part of the Map My ride program. Getting ready to sink some money in for the yearly subscription as this app in my opinion works just fine for me. All my gear so far has synced right up, cadence, speed, iphone, Denon blue tooth head phones…etc.
2. It’s their program, it’s their information read their agreement! Everyone has one and you must read the fine writing. And if you owned this app would you want the ability of this information being swapped between competitors? You used my lawn mower to mow your lawn? Go get your own maggot! ;)
3. My phone has never died using this app playing my music over bluetooth and syncing all my gear through bluetooth at the a same time. I’v e gone on 4 hr bike rides with half charged phone left by the time I get home. And the app still operates when my screen is turned off. (It seems to me you have not used this app much?!)
4. Who likes a bragger anyway, maybe I’m a private person but what I do in my private time is my business. But I my daughter also has MMR app and we added each other to the friends list. It sounds off when one of us starts a workout and then sounds off again we one of us finishes a workout and we can live track each other if we are not riding together. So socially I believe it is just right. (Still seems like your missing some main parts on this app)
5. Who cares about what other apps they come out with? You started out with why a certain one sucks why jump to another program? Stay on task, you moving on to cry about a totally different fun and funny app just proves you don’t have 5 reasons why the main app you were talking about sucks!
And did you know that you burn more calories and relieve more stress by walking you dog than walking alone!? No shit sherlock!
What he said LOL