In a
rare public apology, Apple CEO Tim Cook on Friday wrote an open letter to
customers that acknowledged widespread complaints about the company's new Maps application.
"At
Apple, we strive to make world-class products that deliver the best experience
possible to our customers," Cook wrote. "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." (Click here to view the
full letter).
After using Google's (GOOG,Fortune 500) mapping data for five years, Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) went in a new direction with the iOS 6
update to its mobile operating system, which rolled out to millions of iPhones,
iPads and iPod Touch devices on Sept. 19. The new Apple Maps is also built into
all iPhone 5s, which went on sale a week ago.
Apple
Maps is powered by significantly less data than its predecessor. Google's
enormous database of geographical points has been replaced by Yelp's far less
substantial list, as well as Apple's own compiled "places of
interest" database. In other words, good luck searching for your favorite
off-the-beaten-path restaurant if it's not on Yelp. Spelling variations also
seem to trip up the new Maps app.
Beyond
search, iPhone users have already found some giant goofs in Apple's data. The
info on some well-known landmarks is comically off target or woefully incomplete.
The tech giant partnered with
TomTom, Waze, Yelp (YELP) and others to create its own map,
complete with turn-by-turn navigation, voice integration and a cool new 3D
"Flyover" feature. In his letter of apology, Cook noted that Apple
"had to create a new version of Maps from the ground up" in order to
offer these new features. It has been widely reported that Google, which
includes most of those features in its Android smartphone software, refused to
hand those features over to Apple.
Apple
has preached patience in its earlier comments about Maps. Cook reiterated that,
noting that "the more our customers use our Maps the better it will
get." He said more than 100 million Apple devices are using the new Maps,
and customers have used the app to search for nearly 500 million locations so
far. Apple engineers will continue "working non-stop" until Maps
reaches the "high standard" Apple customers have grown to expect from
the company, he said.
In
the meantime, the CEO made a surprising move:
He recommended alternatives to Apple's app, including Microsoft (MSFT, Fortune 500)Bing, AOL's (AOL) MapQuest, Nokia (NOK),
Waze -- and yes, even Google.
No comments:
Post a Comment