Last week, Apple released their latest mobile operating system, iOS 6. One feature that has received a large amount of criticism from competitors and even some long time Apple users has been a new mapping module developed by Apple itself – a replacement for what Google has been supplying on the iPhone since its debut in 2007. The decision to switchover was not due to user demand, but a case of corporate politics. While many iPhone owners may have loved Google Maps, Apple had no love for Google. The biggest competitive threat to the iPhone is Google’s Android platform. Perhaps this is just one of the many reasons Apple has decided to cut ties with Google.
Sadly for Apple, the new maps are nowhere near the quality of Google’s. Shortly after the release of iOS 6 was immediately followed by complaints by users, which lack a significant amount of detail and turn by turn directions which lead you down roads that no longer exist. Even Apple’s highly-touted “flyover” feature is somewhat broken: it frequently displays comically distorted images that end up making major landmarks look like they’ve been destroyed. For example: The Statue of Liberty is gone, and The Brooklyn Bridge is melting! Users have also made several reports about public transportation routes not displaying correctly, and having a recommended app from the App Store pop up on screen.
Tip: Go to the Google Maps website. Once you’ve arrived on the page, users will be prompted with a choice to let Safari and Google Maps use their current location, in which they will need to click “yes,” and after that, users can press the share button at the bottom center of the screen, and click the center option that features the Google Maps application logo, which reads, “Add to Home Screen.”
At this point, it seems pretty obvious that Apple is going to have deal with users posting screenshots of distorted landmarks, spelling errors, and wrong directions all over the internet including popular social networking platforms such as: Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and Instagram. Some have taken Apple’s new maps app and decided to create a website where users can upload comical iOS Maps photos of their own. So now, using Apple Maps might make you late for the route you’re heading to, and Google Maps must be run via Safari, which will you use on a regular basis?
With that said, it will be interesting to see what actions Apple will take in order to improve the current issues with Maps for iOS 6. I believe that the best solution for Maps would be for Apple to have Google develop a new Maps application for iOS 6 devices. If Apple does decide to partner with Google once again to improve their Maps app, it could end up taking a good amount of time, up to a few months! There are several complicating factors to Google’s development of the app. Google was unaware that Apple had changed their mind to not use Google for the app, up until Apple publicly announced that they would replace the current app with its new maps app in June. We’l have to wait and see how Apple decides to resolve the current issue with its Maps app.