Apple vs Google Maps

To me it's just incomprehensible. It's like Apple really doesn't care at all about the user experience. Or even basic, fundamental usability. I mean like zero usability.

Earlier I mentioned that in my neighborhood in Tokyo none of the block numbers are shown! That's like leaving off the street names in the U.S.

Today I was in a major center in Tokyo (Akihabara) and tried it there and it was the same thing. Just huge blank gaps in vague outlines of the area. The shopkeepers in the store all admitted it.

In Apple's previous app, which used Google info, it was filled with detailed information. What made Apple think they could reproduce the years of effort required to match all that info in a short amount of time? What made them not re-think? What made them release an incredibly, incomprehensibly unusable product? It's a mystery to me.

doug

I wish I'd do my homework before upgrading to iOS6. Apple Maps is terrible. I depended on the maps app for my work, and now my home town is not on the map! I guess the replacement for my iphone 4 will not be an iphone.

Can you "Restore to Original Settings" ?

Does that take you back to pre-iOS 6 ?

I live in the US and I like it on my iPhone 5. For me it has been a lot faster and a lot more accurate than the old maps. Searching for business in the old maps was a joke -- we never used it when it was important because we had been led down so many dead-end roads (literally). We had three incidents that were so bad everyone in the family remembered them -- so we checked these three and the new maps were spot on. My wife's iPhone 4 with old iOS still had all three in the wrong place. And some of these errors are over two years old. So for us, Google maps sucked. We used Bing. Now we use the Apple maps.

Not having to have the Garmin, and pay to keep it updated is nice, too. I used it for 4 hours the other day, and went from 100% to 60% -- all on battery. Not to mention how much the Garmin interface sucked. (Can't say suc ks.)

So for 3 days of use, my family gives it a thumbs up. The test will be if Apple keeps it updated and improves it. If they add a cache, so it will download your route and areas around it so that it doesn't need a data connection -- they'll score huge points with those of us that sometimes go through "no data, no service, no nada" land.

Doug your rhetorical question is true. Now we need Apple to admit their error and let us upgrade to ios5.1.1.

The fun part about all this is the different categories of need. I've seen some saying "never use maps, why are you all so torqued about this?" to "Google maps are bad as no turn by turn or this or that" to "map data will eventually get better".

For those that don't have a direct immediate need of good maps, don't use it day-to-day, or the features override the data in priority with belief that data will improve over time and Google maps makes data errors too, its certainly understandable that this group won't see the Maps app issue as a big failure or concern. Rightly so.

Unfortunately, the users of the iPhone aren't a homogeneous group. Among us is the group where the Map app for a variety of reasons may be as essential a day-to-day item as phone calling or email or whatever else and the map data may be much more important than new features or functions...when I type in an address it needs to go to the right place first time whether there is a turn-by-turn capability or not. This group can include students going to their first job interview, small business people in the field that go to different client locations for the first time every day (delivery, appraisal, home inspection, delivery, home care, cleaning, etc), people on vacation, visiting, or moving to a new location and trying to find their way around, etc. And the variety of available map data for more than addresses along with the variety of ways to easily get to that data (i.e. link directly from email info to map) and alternate means to examine the data to verify where you are going (satellite pic with good detail, streetview type functions, etc) and not having to pop into a Web browser or a variety of secondary apps (sometimes even more than one) to use maps to find a place only increases this growth in dependence on the reliability of map data to "find" where you want to go and it working properly and neatly (as in Apple's "it just works"). This group has adopted to this way of doing things, so its not frivolous to them whether it works or not...they need it to work "now" and to continue to work "now" since its been working fine since "then" and they've structured their way of working/playing/traveling/etc to that capability just the same as so many have structured the way they socialize to integrate social networking media into their daily lives. Some can put down social media, but you can't deny it or turn it off suddenly with it being so prevalent, it is what it is.

And to take the social media example one more step, there are those that structure their business, advertising, interactions, scheduling, etc around that...well, the same goes to businesses that just like the old "presence in the phone book" idea, have structured themselves to be visible where the majority of map and location searches happen, in this case between Android and the old iOS pre-6, was Google.

So keep those groups in mind and now picture Apple walks in and basically says "hey, we have a new functionality/capability for maps for you but in the process the data is going to suck big time in many areas and your collective experience is going to move it up from, lets say, 10% error to 70-90% depending on area in getting the address right the first time. And by the way, you no longer have half decent satellite images or street view or equivalent to help resolve questionable address results, etc".

So to take one section of this group as an example, you are a small business person that works in the field and you can't find your clients anymore...you're gonna be ticked if you upgraded you software as your device has now become a brick in terms of the functionality you need and use everyday, and you're gonna hold off upgrading your device even if you didn't upgrade your software on your old one.

Take this further, you are now waiting to see what Apple does in response to this bricking of your functionality. If you managed to keep your old device on iOS 5 you still have the old functionality, but now depending on Apple's moves you may or may not consider upgrading devices in the near future. If you upgraded your device's software or bought the new device, now you are in an urgent response point where if Apple doesn't move quickly, you are having to return the device or buy a new one like Android fast to replace that missing functionality.

One more step only, promise. Now take this group that lives and breathes this functionality to the same level as some do social media, and they are facing a frozen software ecosystem where they can't upgrade ever or they lose their maps, or they have had or are having to trend to another device from another ecosystem like Android, Winphone, etc. A large % of this group probably uses more than one device from the same ecosystem (for Apple that might mean iOS devices, Macbooks, iMacs, etc). This group tends to prefer a nice tidy ecosystem of compatible devices that don't requrie a lot of work to keep them talking to each other...if they have to replace one device, over time they are going to trend to replace other devices along the same decision lines.

This too could be a long term hurtful trend to Apple. Apple already lived through this one with iCloud that I lived through in a small business user sense...you could use it in iOS but it did not play well with the Mac OSX or Windows environment for continuity of use and info right out of the box. So people in this same group looking for cloud solutions went elsewhere with their decisions where there were more cohesive architectures (MS Office/Hotmail/Skydrive, Google equivalent, Dropbox plus any email service and office apps, etc) and they relegated iCloud to the same status as Apple Maps flyover...neat, but not much use beyond a little bit of novelty. And this group tends to not to wait a year or to look back at that functionality a year later as they may have waited patiently for it to first come out the first time and expected Apple's "it just works" to apply...when it didn't, time to move on, no second chances as we need it to "just work" in the now, not the far future because we have decisions to make on what we are going to use full-time in the "now" after waiting to this point of time when the later became "now" once already.

Confusing isn't it? LOL...but the essence is if you need something to just work in the now, promising it will work later and by the way your old functionality no longer works in the now is a great way to send people elsewhere without any intention of returning because they have started down another path and have no interest in reversing course yet again after trust is broken.

Anyway, all of this to say its one concern no one seemed to be addressing...those that live by a certain type and level of functionality that is taken away...guess what, they have to move on and aren't likely to wait around for the later as they can't afford to if that functionality impacts them too severely in the now.

Apple gets its own store location wrong...

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/09/23/ios_6_maps_get_apple_store_sydney_locati on_wrong/

"Apple Maps are the best in the world, because we say so"

Arrogant, eh?

Picture this, you go to your local book shop to buy a series of maps for your kids to complete their school projects ( I have 3 teenagers so I have been there ) lets say a World Map, Europe Map & one of France. You pay €40, CHF50, or $46, whatever... You get home to discover that all the maps are incorrect, cities missing, towns in the wrong counties, cantons, you start to seriously laugh with your kids, then you try to comprehend how the map producer could f*** up to such an extent.

After the laughter you calm down return the maps, complain and naturally get your money back in full, this happens only after the shop keeper stops laughing him or herself. Naturally you spend the next 10 years telling everyone about these daft maps you bought and had to return. Ultimately it was no big deal as there were lots of alternatives and you bought others immediately....

So Apple,

You have f****** up big time!!

If you insult me once more with your crap PR you have lost a loyal customer, (5 iPhones in this house, 3 iPads, lots of iPods, 2 MacBooks, 1 iMac, 1 MacBook Pro, Time Cap, 2 APort Ex, Apple TV & all the accessories....thousands of € $ CHF - and you send us this sh**, you have managed to p*** off every customer you have and you appear to be unable to come forward and talk to the very ones that have made you the company you are today.

Is anyone home or are you all on leave after the launch of iPhone?

Your extreme arrogance will yet be your downfall,

I wouldn't phrase it exactlyl that way, but I agree with the sentiment. I feel rather like I am being played for the fool. It does seem arrogant on the part of Apple to assume their customers will just eat whatever is dished out to them.

VERY interesting article on Apple vs. Google in map technology etc

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/24/technology/apples-feud-with-google-is-now-felt -on-the-iphone.html

Apple will allow us to go back to ios5 if?

1. The groundswell that started on this and every forum increases to a roar.

2. Significantly more bloggers and news organizations around the world print the truth about this ios6 mess Apple created that we all call a Downgrade.

3. Others from around the world post their Horror Stories at http://www.apple.com/feedback but PLEASE don't swear.

4. Get your facts straight. One fact is that Apple Maps is a composite of other programs that Apple mixed together in thier witches kitchen to create this downgrade. Apple cannot fix Apple Maps for many many years and by than Google Maps will be even better.

5. Apple not to long ago held only 5% of the market and they need to be reminded that we the customer can easily revert back to alternatives that in many cases are superior to Apple.

Oh what a mistake to make! I trustingly hit upgrade on my phone and now I have a maps program that can't even locate the international airport. Not a big ask, is it? Maybe Apple mistakenly used it to find the way forward and accidently disappeared up their own backside instead. With Apple Maps, I can totally see how this could happen.

So, after doing some research into the issues that Apple are facing it looks like it may well take some time (read years) for Apple to match Google’s mapping / search capabilities.

For those of you hoping Google will bring out an ios6 app it won't help. ios maps are integrated into the structure of the iPhone any app using location based services will be using the native ios maps.

My Samsung Galaxy 3 arrived today.

I will of course keep my iPhone 4, put it on a PAYG sim and keep an eye on things with a view to coming back to Apple once they’ve sorted out the catastrophe that is maps.

I bear no malice, I get why they did it. You can’t have 90% of all global mobile searches going through a competitor without doing something about it. (40% of all go via an iPhone to Google)

All the best Apple and see you in a year or two…

Tim Cook Personally Apologises For The Awful State Of Apple Maps

: http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2012/09/tim-cook-personally-apologises-for-the-awful-s tate-of-apple-maps/

Finally!!!

a little too late though, as I decided yesterday not to buy the 5 simpley due to the arrogance of Apple on this issue, had the apology come by yesterday, I may have upgraded !; but then again they say better late than never....

will wait and see

Here'e Tim Cook's letter:

http://www.apple.com/letter-from-tim-cook-on-maps/

To our customers,

At Apple, we strive to make world-class products that deliver the best experience possible to our customers. With the launch of our new Maps last week, we fell short on this commitment. We are extremely sorry for the frustration this has caused our customers and we are doing everything we can to make Maps better.

We launched Maps initially with the first version of iOS. As time progressed, we wanted to provide our customers with even better Maps including features such as turn-by-turn directions, voice integration, Flyover and vector-based maps. In order to do this, we had to create a new version of Maps from the ground up.

There are already more than 100 million iOS devices using the new Apple Maps, with more and more joining us every day. In just over a week, iOS users with the new Maps have already searched for nearly half a billion locations. The more our customers use our Maps the better it will get and we greatly appreciate all of the feedback we have received from you.

While we’re improving Maps, you can try alternatives by downloading map apps from the App Store like Bing, MapQuest and Waze, or use Google or Nokia maps by going to their websites and creating an icon on your home screen to their web app.

Everything we do at Apple is aimed at making our products the best in the world. We know that you expect that from us, and we will keep working non-stop until Maps lives up to the same incredibly high standard.

Tim Cook
Apple’s CEO

Apple's astounding arrogance (for YEARS) has finally bit it on the a'ss hard. This is going to cost Apple hundreds of millions of dollars, mark my words.

Some humility in Cupertino can't be a bad thing.

But note: Google refused to give Apple turn-by-turn navigation, so Google is to blame as well.

However, Apple in their arrogance, decided not to include both apps, since then no one would feed back to improve Apple's feeble effort here.