Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Which is worse blunder: Lightning or Maps?

Which is worse blunder: Lightning or Maps?

  • Lightning

    Votes: 17 7.5%

  • Maps

    Votes: 69 30.3%

  • No blunder, everything fine, nothing to see, move along....

    Votes: 142 62.3%
  • Total voters
    228
  • Poll closed .
PracticalMac

PracticalMac

macrumors 68030
Original poster
Jan 22, 2009
2,857
5,246
Houston, TX
EDIT: I am NOT saying Lighting is a bad technolgoy.
I *AM* saying Apple bungled the switch to it, citing a number of people with bad cables out of box, and NO options on release day (even spare cables from Apple was not yet released).
/EDIT


Apple admitted Maps was far from polished with all manner of mistakes so unlike the usually well polished Apple products.

On the other hand, it looks like the Lightning cable is far more serious, since even to CHARGE the iPhone 5 needs the special "smart" cable.
I have read a few posts of people getting faulty cables that would not charge their phones.

Now Apple is planning a meeting next month for accessory makers on how to make Lightning accessories, even though it gave a select few vendors early access. I am sure a lot of accessory makers are seriously pissed off right now.

Lightning seems fabulous, but as of this writing one will loose many of the capabilities of the 30 pin and gain nothing useful.
Right now it is a big step backward until those accessories get on the market, and even then.


So, did Apple make a serious mistake not to get more vendors on the action weeks/months earlier and forgo it being a secret?

Poll coming (I hope...)
 
Last edited:
PracticalMac said:
On the other hand, it looks like the Lightning cable is far more serious, since even to CHARGE the iPhone 5 needs the special "smart" cable.
Click to expand...

Not even going to get drawn into your stupid "debate".

There is nothing wrong with lightning, it's a good improvement over the outdated 30 pin, and your assumption above is just plain wrong.

I can charge my iphone 5 using any microUSB cable or charger I have, no "smart" cable needed.
 
I actually like the new connection cable, and with 5 apple devices in my household I had accumulated a bunch of 30 pin cables

What I like about the lightning cable is unlike the 30 pin you don't have insert it a specific way.
 
I always hated Maps prior to iOS 6. While the results were relevant, it was slow and lack of turn-by-turn made it one of the least frequently used bundled apps. Maps on iOS 6 isn't great either, but the user experience and turn-by-turn makes it much more usable (and I have NAVIGON, which is being used less and less because usability is so poor).

While search results, data accuracy, and routing are nowhere nearly as good as before, they are good enough for me to find my way around in most cases.

As for Lightning, I have no problem buying new cables (I have 2 currently, 1 at work and 1 at home vs. 3-4 for 30-pin cables) and retiring old iHome speaker. Let's face it, the old cable was very fragile and hard to use (it would frequently scrape the device). The benefits clear overweigh the negatives.
 
I don't think an accessory that is difficult for third parties to replicate and has limited compatibility should be considered a blunder...those things tend to happen with new technology. If it didn't work at all and ran half the speed of the 30 pins, then maybe, but I've experienced no problems with the cable or any of the accessories with which I use it.

Maps wasn't a big dealbreaker either, but I've already had TomTom for a long time. That being said, I haven't actually experienced any of the reported issues with the new maps application myself -- it's gotten me to everywhere I've asked it to (literally, asked Siri) without any problems.
 
So far maps has been flawless. And the new plug was long overdue. It is faster than the traditional USB cable and backs up much faster...it is much easier to plug in when you cant look since its reversible and I just got my adapter so no issues.
 
I respect Apple for trying to make a turn by turn navigation App that is native to the device. I mean it isn't their fault that google wouldn't let them use the navigation app that comes on all android apps.
 
The 30 pin connector needed replacement.. it was very much outdated. In 1-2 years time.. lightning connector's will be everywhere on accessories. It isn't going away. All future iPods/iPhones/iPad's will have it.
 
No blunder. Lightning was a good idea that had to happen sooner or later. Maps is growing pains. They should have left Google Maps on it as well with Apple Maps an app for the first year while it was sorted before banishing off Google.
 
Lightning. 30 pin was working just fine for me. The only new 'features' I get out of lightning are the ability to reverse the connector, which I don't care about, and a smidgeon of extra thinness, which I don't care about, either.
 
I was going to say Maps but I've discovered Lightning's USB connector is too small and slippery for me to reliably remove it. Particularly when it's plugged in next to something else. So I'll say "draw".
 
If you really want a good answer to this, post the same question/poll on a site where 98% of readers/posters aren't drinking the kool aid. Try Engadget, Gizmodo or something.

I'd say they're both pretty bad.

----------
G-Mo said:
Whaa whaa whaa I don't like change whaa whaa!
Click to expand...


says the guy only using apple products.:confused:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back