Hasta La Gadget!

Earlier today, Apple CEO Tim Cook issued a public apology to users of the company’s new Maps app. A good portion of the letter addressed the different alternatives that users could take advantage of while Apple was busy improving their own maps. The company is now making it even more convenient to download and install a maps app that isn’t Apple’s own.

The iTunes App Store now has a special “featured” section where Apple has gathered up all of its recommended maps apps into one place, which makes it handy for those looking to get away from the company’s own mapping solution. Some of the apps that they recommend are MotionX, Waze, Mapquest, and TeleNav.

In Cook’s letter, he also mentioned using web apps from Nokia and Google. Apple’s website details how to add shortcuts to these web apps to your iPhone’s home screen. It simply involves tapping the “Share” button in Safari, then tapping “Add to Home Screen”, giving the shortcut a name, and hit “Add”.

All of this is certainly a classy move by Apple, and it’s probably one of the few times that Apple is recommending using an alternative to one of its own apps. I’m sure third-party mapping solutions are seeing an increase in usage as we speak. One company’s misfortune is another company’s fortune.

[via MacRumors]

Apple now makes it super easy to use alternative maps is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Apple had a bad situation on their hands when it became apparent over the past week that their new non-Google “Maps” app appeared to fall short of expectations, but Tim Cook took this situation today and flipped it on its head entirely. It’s not that Cook apologized for the situation – the situation being that Apple Maps (without Google) isn’t as perfect as they wanted it to be – it’s that inside this apology, he encouraged users to use other products while they remain patient for Apple Maps to improve. Tim Cook took a situation where Apple could easily have said “just chill out” to the public and said instead, in so many words, “we’re confident enough in our own product that we’ll literally tell you to use other solutions while we prove to you that you’ll want to return to us when the time is right” – this is rare in the tech industry.

The full apology can be found in our other post from earlier today called “Apple CEO Tim Cook apologizes for Apple Maps fiasco”, but the most important bit can be found here. In one line, Cook takes iOS 6 users down a road containing maps from all of Apple’s new Maps’ main competitors. He even tells users to use Google Maps in a browser.

“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.” – Tim Cook

It’s absolutely unimportant at this very moment if any other company would have done the same or even if Apple would have done the same in the past. Apple has right this moment entered a new age in which they don’t just create products that compete only with their past products – notice their advertisements that don’t mention the competition – they’ve officially encouraged their competitors to make products that will help them move into the future.

Of course if you think Apple made it this far on it’s own, you’re sorely mistaken. Apple has always relied on their friends AND their competitors to create an ecosystem in which they’ll thrive. I leave you with this undeniably awesome, lighthearted vision from all the way back in 1983 – the Apple Software Dating Game. See what you make of it!

Tim Cook’s Maps apology a massive display of power is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Apple has been under some extreme fire lately with their new Maps app on iOS 6. A lot of users have been reporting that the new maps are inaccurate and extremely buggy, especially the new 3D flyover feature where melting architecture was the bane on user experience. Apple CEO Tim Cook has brought up the problems and issued a public apology on the matter.

Cook posted up an open letter on Apple’s website mentioning how the new iOS 6 maps app “fell short” of the company’s high standard. Surprisingly, a good portion of Cook’s letter discusses different third-party suggestions for iOS 6 users to use instead. He suggests using maps from Bing, Mapquest, and Waze, as well as web apps from Nokia and Google. Cook says to use these alternatives while Apple works to improve their maps app in the meantime.

Tim Cook’s full apology letter is below:

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

It’s certainly surprising to see Cook suggest other maps apps over their in-house option. That’s definitely something you don’t see everyday, but it shows that Apple realizes it screwed up a bit and that they’re being the bigger man by telling users to take advantage of other strong map solutions while they work on improving theirs. It shows that they want their users to have the best user experience possible whether or not that involves using Apple’s own app catalog.

[via Phone Scoop]

Apple CEO Tim Cook apologizes for Apple Maps fiasco is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Well, it’s hardly a secret that customers are unhappy with Apple’s new mapping solution in iOS 6. And, while the company has admitted that, perhaps, it’s not quite up to snuff yet, it has played down Maps’ flaws and urged customers to be patient. Today, in an open letter to the Apple faithful, Tim Cook struck a far more candid and conciliatory tone, apologizing for failing to deliver a “world-class” product. Cook went so far as to suggest that unhappy customers could check out offerings from competitors like Bing, MapQuest, Google and Nokia — at least until Cupertino sorts this mess out. You’ll find the complete text of the letter after the break.

Update: As CNET reports, Apple has now also gone one step further and added a new list of featured mapping alternatives to the App Store, including apps from TeleNav, Garmin, Magellan and others.

You can read our editorial on Apple apologies since the launch of the iPhone here.

Continue reading Tim Cook apologizes for Maps mess

Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Mobile, Apple

Tim Cook apologizes for Maps mess originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Sep 2012 08:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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San Francisco shook today, but thankfully, it wasn’t from an earthquake. In case you missed today’s event, Apple took the wraps off of the new iPhone 5, along with a new batch of iPods, a new version of iTunes and a round of price reductions. A replay of the keynote is available on Apple’s website, where you can join Tim Cook, Phil Schiller, Scott Forstall and even the Foo Fighters make waves. So grab your beverage of choice and settle in for two hours of gadget goodness — you’ll find it at the source link below.

Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Mobile

Apple’s iPhone 5 keynote event now live for online viewing originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 12 Sep 2012 19:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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