In+ersec+ion for Spatial People

Quite a lot of news related to the recent launch of Apple Maps along with iOS 6. We already mentioned some backlash and Google and Apple Maps. And here's what's new.

Most surprising is A letter from Tim Cook on Apple Maps, that starts with: "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." This was a topic discussed over Slashdot amongst many other digital places.

Other Apple Maps related news:

• An entry on Apple's New App Store Feature Section for Alternative Maps Apps
• Another Slashdot discussion on Why Apple Replaced iOS Maps
• MacRumors also had an entry named How To Report a Problem With iOS 6 Maps Data
• O'Reilly have a full article titled Apple's maps problem isn't about software or design. It's about data.: "As Stephen O’Grady has pointed out, the problem with maps is really a data problem, not a software or design problem. If Apple’s maps app was ugly or had a poor user interface, it would be fixed within a month. But Apple is really looking at a data problem: bad data, incomplete data, conflicting data, poor quality data, incorrectly formatted data."
• If you're looking for Apple Maps reviews, TMR shares plenty of them (4 links), including: "A lot of people think that the new maps are a substantial downgrade, not just in terms of missing features (Street View) or features that will require third-party plugins (transit directions), but in terms of basic features like local search and directions. Josh thinks that local search is “a tremendous step backwards and something that cripples iOS for Apple’s customers” because it’s limited to names, addresses and Yelp categories."
• APB also shared their Quick Take on Apple Maps in iOS 6
• MapQuest took the opportunity to remind us in 2 entries about the updated MapQuest app for iOS
• Direction Mag thinks Apple Needs to Acquire TomTom
• Ogle Earth shares an entry on Apple Maps and the Diaoyu/Senkaku islands

My personal experience with Apple Maps was rather very positive so far. Maybe my region is just lucky, but the Apple Maps app is great looking, fast (for the data it displays) and was accurate enough for the 500km of roads where we've been relying on Apple Maps last weekend. And the 3D for my city (Montreal) is awesome, much better than the 2D Google-maps based iOS 5 app. I haven't used the Apple Maps search feature extensively and I haven't compared with what's being offered on Android nowadays.