Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Apple Moved Location Services In-House With iPad and iOS 4
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Me too. Maybe the next iteration of iLife will include iMap which will then trickle to the iDevices.
WiFi Navigation Broke with iOS4
This explains why, after upgrading my iTouch to iOS4, the "WiFi navigation" in Maps that worked quite nicely stopped working.
Perhaps Apple's database of locations is much smaller than Skyhook's. And perhaps that will change over time. But for now, it's a big feature loss.
Dave
This explains why, after upgrading my iTouch to iOS4, the "WiFi navigation" in Maps that worked quite nicely stopped working.
Perhaps Apple's database of locations is much smaller than Skyhook's. And perhaps that will change over time. But for now, it's a big feature loss.
Dave
Disturbig Trend
Apple separating from Google is not a good thing for iPhone users. It's not just about WiFi location database. It's Google Earth, it's a huge database of businesses and all kinds of things where the search engine is of paramount importance. Going forward we can expect that iPhone users will have inferior experience in many regards. iPhone Google Maps application is very inferior to Android counterpart already. No Google Navigation on iPhone. The trend is not good.
Apple separating from Google is not a good thing for iPhone users. It's not just about WiFi location database. It's Google Earth, it's a huge database of businesses and all kinds of things where the search engine is of paramount importance. Going forward we can expect that iPhone users will have inferior experience in many regards. iPhone Google Maps application is very inferior to Android counterpart already. No Google Navigation on iPhone. The trend is not good.
You yourself said it. You just made one of the major importance in not relying on Google services because "iPhone Google Maps application is very inferior to Android counterpart". Why? Google could have made both iPhone and Android apps with the same features. But they chose not to. And why is it that? Simple, when Google puts out an app for the Android they want iPhone app to leg behind on many features (competition). Regardless of whether Apple uses Google location-based services, Google will not change this approach and will continue to make iPhone apps inferior. And their excuse when questioned on my they don't introduce the same apps or same features on iPhone, they state that technologically its not possible. One of the worst lame excuses I have ever heard.
The Maps app on the iPhone is native to the OS. Updating that app requires an OS update. It can't simply be updated like a regular App Store app. I would also be willing to bet that Apple has a greater hand in the design and implementation of the Maps app on the iPhone than Google itself does... Apple just happened to choose Google as the underlying data provider for the app, but I'd bet that the app itself is written and maintained in-house by Apple.
For your information that is Apple's fault, Google said many times (just look it up) they will bring the "same" google Navigation App to the iPhone if Apple Approves it. Guess what...they haven't!!
Same goes for Latitud and Gvoice
this is what Offical Google Spokeman said to Apple insider on a Interview:
Bing Maps is already better than Google Maps in a lot of things especially finding local businesses. and it looks cooler on the desktop version. and bing is already better at searching for things to do
If history is any indication, Apple will not cooperate with Microsoft either so no Bing Maps for you
The '1984' commercial by Apple was more foreboding than we could ever have imagined.
I wonder who'll be taking the swinging hammer to thein a couple of years.
Get a life. Apple relied on the likes of Microsoft in 1984 to be the agile hammer thrower and Microsoft turned out to be the IBM's successor to control.
Apple won't make that mistake with Google.
If history is any indication, Apple will not cooperate with Microsoft either so no Bing Maps for you
apple is already working with Microsoft on iOS for MS Exchange integration along with security. and OS X has all kinds of MS code to work with Windows and Exchange Server
I think its a good idea, and Ive had no resulting problems. The benefit will come when Google/Skyhook are unable to interfere with or hold back Apples plans (not that theyd do so on purpose, but by lack of meeting Apples priorities).
Whats interesting is that AFAICT, theyre NOT sending vehicles around the globe like Skyhook and Google. Theyre using our iPhones AS data collectors. As long as nothing is being sent about ME, thats a pretty ingenious solution, far better than filling up gas tanks.
And if youre paranoid that they ARE gathering info about you, then:
* Why do you trust Google and Skyhook more?
* Why do you trust their vans roaming the earth and reading your dreams?
* Why do you think its MORE scary that Apple SAYS they gather WiFi geolocation data like Google and Skyhook. Wouldnt it be scarier if they pretended not to?
* If you dont trust them (or at least, the likelihood that theyd get busted), then how can you buy anything that has WiFi or a GPS chip? They could track you, no matter what they say.
* In fact, how can you buy anything that has ANY chip in it? There could be a GPS in there you dont know about!
* In fact, how can you buy anything that cant be pushed through a sieve?
As for me... I say enjoy the benefits of technology, and rather than rejecting every item of personal electronics, keep a close eye on the practices of corporations. Abuses and mistakes WILL happen, so be glad for anyone out there (security researchers, regulators, paranoid users with Little Snitch) who can catch them and maybe stop them. Theyre only human and its not a perfect answer, but giving up electronics and living in a tree eating grubs isnt ideal either.
What specifically? iPhone has pretty extensive and fine-grained privacy control, especially for this topic: location services. You can even see a history of which apps have tracked you lately, as a second-wave defense if you ACCIDENTALLY said Yes to a GPS request without realizing it. Android may have some specific benefits, but you cant ignore that iOS has its own as well. Big ones.
The freedom and safety of Google over Apple seems to be largely soundbites to me. Specific examples of user freedom Apple took away seem to be quite rare and obscureand the same could be said of Google or Microsoft easily.
Apple obviously need to have a strategy, a backup plan. We saw this again and again (intel switch, ROKR -> iPhone, etc). The current Google is not the old Google anymore. The Google fanboys are still thinking that Google is still the innocent and do-no-evil startup for some reason.
I think it’s a good idea, and I’ve had no resulting problems. The benefit will come when Google/Skyhook are unable to interfere with or hold back Apple’s plans (not that they’d do so on purpose, but by lack of meeting Apple’s priorities).
What’s interesting is that AFAICT, they’re NOT sending vehicles around the globe like Skyhook and Google. They’re using our iPhones AS data collectors. As long as nothing is being sent about ME, that’s a pretty ingenious solution, far better than filling up gas tanks.
And if you’re paranoid that they ARE gathering info about you, then:
* Why do you trust Google and Skyhook more?
* Why do you trust their vans roaming the earth and reading your dreams?
* Why do you think it’s MORE scary that Apple SAYS they gather WiFi geolocation data like Google and Skyhook. Wouldn’t it be scarier if they pretended not to?
* If you don’t trust them (or at least, the likelihood that they’d get busted), then how can you buy anything that has WiFi or a GPS chip? They could track you, no matter what they “say.”
* In fact, how can you buy anything that has ANY chip in it? There could be a GPS in there you don’t know about!
* In fact, how can you buy anything that can’t be pushed through a sieve?
As for me... I say enjoy the benefits of technology, and rather than rejecting every item of personal electronics, keep a close eye on the practices of corporations. Abuses and mistakes WILL happen, so be glad for anyone out there (security researchers, regulators, paranoid users with Little Snitch) who can catch them and maybe stop them. They’re only human and it’s not a perfect answer, but giving up electronics and living in a tree eating grubs isn’t ideal either.
What specifically? iPhone has pretty extensive and fine-grained privacy control, especially for this topic: location services. You can even see a history of which apps have tracked you lately, as a second-wave defense if you ACCIDENTALLY said Yes to a GPS request without realizing it. Android may have some specific benefits, but you can’t ignore that iOS has it’s own as well. Big ones.
The freedom and safety of Google over Apple seems to be largely soundbites to me. Specific examples of user freedom Apple took away seem to be quite rare and obscure—and the same could be said of Google or Microsoft easily.
The Android has 4 different location services you can enable or disable, as well as a history of connections, as well as when downloading an application it specifically tells you what services are being used by the app. I think Apple does a fine job but all these useless blab of Google being so much eviler than Apple is dumb. Both companies use us all for 1 thing... data because data is the new dollar.
Same could be said for Apple.
We already have the option to use Bing on Safari. Really though, if you look at Microsoft, it seems like they are a tamer giant now. Besides, your enemy's enemy is your friend. Google is doing all it can on all fronts to compete with MS (Chrome OS, all their online services, etc).If history is any indication, Apple will not cooperate with Microsoft either so no Bing Maps for you
Location service off when using Microcell
That is interesting to know and probably explains why my updates to WiFi MAC address and location info to Skyhook have failed to produce accurate location service reporting when I am on my local WiFi, or 3G Microcell service.
I sure wish Apple would let us know how to correct mistakes in their database, because they are precisely 1 degree off in their reported Latitude, which puts me in the middle of a lake in a totally different state.
The only time my 3G or 4 phone reports the correct location is when it is using a cell phone tower.
That is interesting to know and probably explains why my updates to WiFi MAC address and location info to Skyhook have failed to produce accurate location service reporting when I am on my local WiFi, or 3G Microcell service.
I sure wish Apple would let us know how to correct mistakes in their database, because they are precisely 1 degree off in their reported Latitude, which puts me in the middle of a lake in a totally different state.
The only time my 3G or 4 phone reports the correct location is when it is using a cell phone tower.
How so? Sure, Apple is big too, not disputing that, but the core ideology is still the same. Apple (Jobs) is all about control. This is true from the beginning till today. Nothing has changed other than their products are more widely used by the masses.
Google on the other hand used to talk big. Do no evil. Heck, they even joined the spectrum bid, and how they wanted everybody to have fast internet access. Yet they didn't follow through with any of those. Now, they're trying to copy Facebook, copy twitter, copy Bing, bitch with Apple, made a deal with China, etc. Oh, and Android is taking us back to carrier-controlled phones (US).
That's the least you should expect for the money Google makes selling your information to everyone.
I had more issues with Comcast, MS and my bank distributing my information to un desired people than i had with google.
