Police say they have rescued a half dozen motorists in recent weeks who were using the app to navigate to a city only to find themselves stranded in the wilderness of a national park.
CNET has contacted Apple for comment and will update this report when we learn more.
Apple ignited consumer fervor in September when it opted to dump Google Maps from iOS6, forcing users to switch to Apple's app, which many users found to be underwhelming or inaccurate when compared with Google's offering.
The firestorm prompted Apple CEO Tim Cook to publicly apologize for the software and promise improvements. The ouster of iOS software chief Scott Forstall was said to be linked to Cook's apology and Forstall's unwillingness to sign it. Richard Williamson, who was in charge of the company's maps software for iOS, was also reportedly fired.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-57558512-37/apples-australian-maps-mishap-linked-to-local-data/
ReplyDeleteAnd its been promptly fixed.
Apple bashers had better gloat while they can. Apple will do just as Google did, and refine their data as errors are reported.
Brett, Apple lacks the brains that google engineers have. Apple maps will always be 2nd rate junk for iSheeps like you.
ReplyDeleteThe only reason they fixed it somewhat quickly is because I heard there are criminal charges being looked in to.
ReplyDeleteIt figures that a hater would find a way to spin Apple's quick turnaround into a negative.
ReplyDeleteApple's Maps defects have nothing to do with "brains" or lack thereof. Apple has plenty of very smart engineers on staff. The biggest advantage Google had was a simply a long head start.
Apple's problem is that they are working with maps data pulled in from a variety of external sources, some of which have errors. These things will be fixed as they are discovered. Apple Maps will continue to improve. In the mean time, iOS users have plenty of alternative mapping options, including a just-released native iPhone Map app from Google (who says its even better than the current Android version).
...And despite their lengthy head start, Google Maps data isn't perfect either. Errors are still being found, some of them dangerous:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.macworld.com.au/news/australian-police-issue-google-maps-warning-82428/
Brett: That they even had to do this in the first place should be a glaring clue regarding their incompetence. Do you understand? Do you understand good companies don't release this sort of thing for people to use before it's ready? Do you understand the sole reason they did this was to get back at Google? That they didn't have the best interests of you or any of their other little "Geniuses" in mind?
ReplyDeleteThat such oversights are not lost on companies who give a shit about the integrity of their products? That good companies don't fuck up this badly for the sake of a cheap shot at competitors?
How poetic, that it backfired so terribly. But very predictable. Apple challenged Google, and Apple blinked. Bawwww
Just face it, for God's sake. This blind allegiance to a company that shits on its customers left and right is sad. You fanboys sure are gluttons for punishment.
Apple Maps works well enough for lots of people. It is not the disaster that some make it out to be. At worst, some users will rely on a different mapping app until Apple Maps improves (which it is doing all the time as errors are reported). Sure, in retrospect, they probably should have waited and done more testing. But what's done is done. The worst is over.
ReplyDeleteApple didn't develop their own Maps in order to "get back" at Google. They did it to insure that they would not have to rely on a competitor for a feature that they see as growing in importance in the long term. Mapping will be tightly integrated with other apps and functions in the years to come. Apple would be crazy to allow an outright competitor to be in control of any key feature! Not only could Google demand egregious licensing terms, but they would be privy to future plans involving mapping, Apple is pulling its ARM CPU fab business from Samsung for similar reasons. Its not about revenge, its about avoiding suppliers with a conflict of interest.
If Apple customers really felt "punished,", it would be reflected in user satisfaction surveys. For all its supposed faults, Apple still scores highly.