BS. Steve was the one obsessed with Google. Steve was the one who vowed to go Thermonuclear on Android. Steve absolutely would have released this.
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Tim Cook Publishes Open Letter on Maps for iOS 6
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I have to confess that I do not have much use for that, either.
It's an impressive display of the powers of the A6, but it's not really all that useful in a Maps application.
IMHO, of course.
And what the hell do I know.
it's going to be a while before it becomes a good application.
i am curious to see how fast they can correct the mistakes.
i live in NY so the maps are essentially correct.
3D view is very iffy especially as far as bridges, parks and anything that is not manhattan is concerned, but it is also more eye candy than anything.
turn-by-turn i haven't used yet, so i can't judge.
what is abysmal is the integration of the locations (subway stations, bus stops, schools, hotels, gas stations, restaurant, cafes businesses in general)
they are all wrong. and by 'all', i mean ALL.
in my immediate neighborhood, the maps shows maybe 20-25 'locations'.
a few (including a school, the subway station, a starbucks, a bar and a cleaner, a supermarket) are in the wrong location (off by around 50-200 yards)
the majority (hotel restaurants, gas stations) are business that DO NOT EXIST at all here, some correspond to venues that are IN OTHER TOWNS, but which happen to have a similar address.
in addition there are dozens of venues that are not indicated on the map at all.
i have been reporting these every day (and the reporting system is slow and inefficient, without enough options, so i doubt people will be embracing it), but so far no changes have been implemented.
we'll see how long it takes to correct at least some of them
i am curious to see how fast they can correct the mistakes.
i live in NY so the maps are essentially correct.
3D view is very iffy especially as far as bridges, parks and anything that is not manhattan is concerned, but it is also more eye candy than anything.
turn-by-turn i haven't used yet, so i can't judge.
what is abysmal is the integration of the locations (subway stations, bus stops, schools, hotels, gas stations, restaurant, cafes businesses in general)
they are all wrong. and by 'all', i mean ALL.
in my immediate neighborhood, the maps shows maybe 20-25 'locations'.
a few (including a school, the subway station, a starbucks, a bar and a cleaner, a supermarket) are in the wrong location (off by around 50-200 yards)
the majority (hotel restaurants, gas stations) are business that DO NOT EXIST at all here, some correspond to venues that are IN OTHER TOWNS, but which happen to have a similar address.
in addition there are dozens of venues that are not indicated on the map at all.
i have been reporting these every day (and the reporting system is slow and inefficient, without enough options, so i doubt people will be embracing it), but so far no changes have been implemented.
we'll see how long it takes to correct at least some of them
there is always the competition that copies apple's mistakes for your purchasing pleasure...
I've been using Apple Maps extensively across the UK. Make no mistake - it's dire overall. But the last few times I've used it, where i've just been tapping in a postcode or a street address it's been working flawlessly. I found my way to clients' offices straight away. The vector maps loaded quickly are look clean and easy to follow and read - it was faster than Google Maps. So far so good.
The BIG problems are the lack of POIs in the database and the 90s-era crude search facilities. On Google Maps I'm used to being in a city wanting, say, a particular type of bar or food or shop and having Google give me many options, showing me the closest first. A search for, say, a Chinese restaurant only works on Apple Maps if the POI is a) there at all or b) has Chinese Restaurant in its name - otherwise it's invisible.
While I think Apple can gives us a high quality basic mapping it's the massive, intelligent Google search backend I'm more sceptical that they can match or even get close to.
The BIG problems are the lack of POIs in the database and the 90s-era crude search facilities. On Google Maps I'm used to being in a city wanting, say, a particular type of bar or food or shop and having Google give me many options, showing me the closest first. A search for, say, a Chinese restaurant only works on Apple Maps if the POI is a) there at all or b) has Chinese Restaurant in its name - otherwise it's invisible.
While I think Apple can gives us a high quality basic mapping it's the massive, intelligent Google search backend I'm more sceptical that they can match or even get close to.
So you need people to use apple maps in order to make it better, yet you guide people to use other map apps cause Apple's sucks? The data is already out there. Stop awarding the contract to the lowest bidder, open you wallet like we all open outs and pay to get good data not 10 year old crap.
Maps for me is about finding places. Apple Maps my work better in US (its using data from Yelp) but here in Sweden its just bad.
One example: a search for "apple store" does not give any results on Apple Maps. On Google Maps I get the newly opened Apple Store and all authorized retailers in Stockholm (or in all of Sweden).
Its same with many other things you search for.
Putting out such a limited product and removing completely the old one without any way to keep it, is just wrong.
I upgraded my iPad to test it, but upgrade on the iPhone will have to wait a few months until they get it right or until Google Maps will be available again.
One example: a search for "apple store" does not give any results on Apple Maps. On Google Maps I get the newly opened Apple Store and all authorized retailers in Stockholm (or in all of Sweden).
Its same with many other things you search for.
Putting out such a limited product and removing completely the old one without any way to keep it, is just wrong.
I upgraded my iPad to test it, but upgrade on the iPhone will have to wait a few months until they get it right or until Google Maps will be available again.
Hey guys here is Android 5.0! You prob wont get it for your device untill next year but youll love us anyways!
FAIL: iOS 6 Maps Confuses Manhattan for Brooklyn
iOS 6 thinks Manhattan is Brooklyn....
How will the poor hipsters find their way.... oh my!!!
For all of you who say they have NO issues.... How did Apple get this wrong?!?!
NYC is as big a city as you can get...
When you can't get a large city like NYC correct, then an apology should be forth-coming. If NYC is so off, I can imagine how bad other (smaller, rural) cities must be portrayed.
.
iOS 6 thinks Manhattan is Brooklyn....
How will the poor hipsters find their way.... oh my!!!
For all of you who say they have NO issues.... How did Apple get this wrong?!?!
NYC is as big a city as you can get...
When you can't get a large city like NYC correct, then an apology should be forth-coming. If NYC is so off, I can imagine how bad other (smaller, rural) cities must be portrayed.
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Attachments
Open letter to tim cook
OPEN LETTER TO TIM COOK
Give us Google Maps App back.
I PAYED for that when I bought my iPhone 3G, my iphone 3GS and my iPhone 4S: Google Maps was advertised by Apple, on Apple ads and Websites, and everywhere, it is part of what I paid for.
I payed for it, I bought it, I own it.
Apple has no right to remove it from my devices with their update if I can't have it back on the Appstore.
Give it back. NOW.
OPEN LETTER TO TIM COOK
Give us Google Maps App back.
I PAYED for that when I bought my iPhone 3G, my iphone 3GS and my iPhone 4S: Google Maps was advertised by Apple, on Apple ads and Websites, and everywhere, it is part of what I paid for.
I payed for it, I bought it, I own it.
Apple has no right to remove it from my devices with their update if I can't have it back on the Appstore.
Give it back. NOW.
Probably, although I think they learnt from the iPhone 4 how an over fizzy media party can quickly turn into serious doubt in the mind of the general public.
Most people have no reference, they just know that there's something terribly and irredeemably f-d with maps on the new iPhone. I see this more as a sign that Apple are waking up to the fact that as world's biggest tech company, you need to be better on top of messaging. Pulling on the chains of a handful or geek magazines, and tech journalists isn't going to cut it anymore.
It's very likely that you do not understand. They had years to come up with this turd, another year of polish could not hurt.
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After using iOS 6 pre-release and seeing the progress during Beta (people knew it DID NOT WORK RIGHT during beta, but Apple apologists kept saying "what do you expect? it's beta!") - it's obvious NO ONE at Apple paid attention during iOS 6 development.
- Incomplete Maps.
- Inconsistency with how the Maps application works (using "Current Location" for your start location enables Voice turn-by-turn, but disables manually stepping forward & back in the directions. Using an address for your start locations allows manually stepping forward & back in directions, but disables Voice turn-by-turn - how can you get both to work ????).
- Terrible App Store issues (having to set the Year ahead to get it to load, crashing on Genius or Restore Purchases if you have too many apps, etc).
The whole thing is a big mess. With every beta release, 2, 3, 4, etc - the problems were not addressed.
Not new to turn by turn, have had a garmin for quite some time. If Apple denied us then why do we have Waze, Garmin etc in the app store? I think it comes down more to Google not wanting to give it to Apple. Glad to see Google has had it for five plus years.
That was one of the things Google could hold over Apple phones. We have turn by turn.
I don't think Apple denied us access, sorry.
For those that have upgraded to iOS 6 and want to roll back to 5, people are doing this, then they can go back to 6 when they want to.
Here's a nice page that details how to roll back to iOS 5.1.1...
http://www.sdtimes.com/blog/post/2012/09/23/How-to-roll-back-to-iOS-5-%28if-necessary%29.aspx
Personally if I had 6 on my handset and wasn't having wifi issues, I'd just make a link to Google Maps web and move on...but folks can roll back if they want.
Although the Maps app is completely inaccurate for anything in my town by several miles and missing a lot of streets, I like the interface and hope the data becomes more accurate very quickly so I can use it.
I like the fact that Cook apologized. When other companies release a new product, you usually don't have the CEOs themselves get on stage and explain/demonstrate it in the way that Apple always does. So its nice when that person later acknowledges a problem with a specific feature. I think offering alternatives from competitors is sort of a double-edged sword though. Could be helpful or could send the wrong message.
I like the fact that Cook apologized. When other companies release a new product, you usually don't have the CEOs themselves get on stage and explain/demonstrate it in the way that Apple always does. So its nice when that person later acknowledges a problem with a specific feature. I think offering alternatives from competitors is sort of a double-edged sword though. Could be helpful or could send the wrong message.
In before apologists say there isn't a problem..
Oh wait, too late
Well, at least the mother ship acknowledges there is a problem.
My thoughts exactly!
Having been accused of being in the 0.01% of "whiners", lumped in with Android fanatics. Here's Apple coming clean on their front page for god sake and folks still don't get it! Apple's map service sucks in a lot of places, period!
Yeah because there's just a few kinks to be works out.
The only thing Steve might have done differently (aside from no apology) was present the rough edges better. Steve was a better salesman than Cook, Schiller and Forstall are.