To simplify: I'd say Google is for drivers, while Apple is for people being driven.

Apple is much more informative, but only where you have the time/energy to focus on the map, such as someone in the back of a taxi wanting to find some tiny location. Google is much easier to read at a glance, ie by someone actually doing something other then using the phone and needing the info to inform that task minute by minute.

There are uses for maps that that don't even involve cars at all! I know I've spend a fair amount of time just browsing around.

Not all drivers are driving cars. Some 'drivers' are actually on foot. A driver is someone both navigating and controlling their movement, requiring different type of map than a passenger or wandering tourist who cares more about seeing lots of place names and interesting landmarks. The driver wants/needs an uncluttered display that can be scanned for vital information quickly.

"The analysis seems to be indicating that the answer is "more","

That wasn't my read at all. What made you think that?

Most of the comparisons seemed to be about number of things at various zoom levels.

I get the impression the purpose of the tally was to identify priorities for each map, rather than render a value judgement.