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Tag: iOS 6

  • That Larger iPhone Won’t Be Out Until June 2014 [Rumor]

    The iPhone 5S and iPhone 6 have been the subject of rumors and speculation since the beginning of this year. Most seem to think that the former will launch this year, and the latter is being saved for next year. A new report has come in to further back those claims.

    Jefferies analyst Peter Misek is back on the iPhone 6 rumor beat with an update. He says that Apple will indeed launch the iPhone 6 in 2014 – June to be exact. He also speculates that the iPhone 6 will receive the oft-rumored display size upgrade.

    So, where does Misek’s report leave this year’s rumored iPhone 5S? While the new device may not sport a larger display, Misek says it will have a better processor, a better camera and new mobile payment options in Passbook. If that’s not enough, he also says that Apple will finally offer the iPhone in a variety of different colors.

    Even without a larger display, the iPhone 5S has the potential to shake everything up on the software side of things. 9to5Mac says that iOS 7 will sport a completely new redesign that ditches the realistic stylings of iOS in favor of a more “flat” design that you see on platforms like Windows 8.

    Some people say that Apple needs to increase the size of the iPhone’s display to better compete with Android, but the iPhone may be able to wait out one more year if iOS receives a substantial upgrade. Software is always more important than hardware, and a completely revamped iOS could make everybody forget about the bigger iPhone until next year.

    [Financial Post via BGR]

  • Apple Adds ‘Download Later’ Option to iTunes Purchases

    Apple has made a small update to its downloading options for iTunes purchases – small but potentially helpful.

    Starting now, users will be given an option to download purchased content later.

    When you purchase something, let’s say a TV season, you’ll be prompted with a “Download Now?” dialogue box. From there, you’ll be given the option to download now or save it for later. if you choose “later,” the content will be accessible to download any time in the future via the cloud.

    The new download option will affect purchases of TV seasons, Season Pass, movie bundles, music box sets, or individual movies or TV episodes using iTunes 11 or iOS 6 or later.

    It’s not a huge update, but it’s significant. Let’s say you think of something that you want to buy, you buy it, but then you don’t really have the connection to attempt a massive download. This feature could be incredibly useful for those who make a habit of downloading big packages.

    Of course, the new download later option is only available for users who live in places where Apple supports iTunes in the cloud.

    [Apple Support via MacWorld]

  • Facebook SDK 3.2 For iOS Now Available

    It’s been quite a while since Facebook last updated its iOS SDK. The last update came out around the launch of the iPhone 5 to include support for iOS 6. The latest SDK update doesn’t have a major iOS update to piggyback on, but it includes a number of features that iOS developers will surely appreciate.

    Facebook announced that version 3.2 of its SDK for iOS is now available to developers everywhere. The big update this time around is better mobile analytics so iOS app developers can get a better idea of how well their app’s Facebook integration is working out.

    Mobile analytics now include a number of new metrics and features that will help you get the most out of it:

  • App Usage Metrics: We’ve enabled additional metrics such as iOS 6 native share sheet and built-in native UI controls usage that can now be logged through our SDK. We’ve also added support for showing these metrics on App Insights to help you understand how people are interacting with your app.
  • Ads Optimization: Similar to our current conversion measurement product for websites, we are currently working on a solution for native iOS apps. Integrating with our SDK will let you log conversion events from your apps. Conversion measurement helps businesses measure and optimize the return on investment of their Facebook Ads by reporting on the actions people take after viewing those ads.
  • Purchase Events (Beta): We’re previewing support for logging in-app purchase events with select partners.

    • Aside from additions to analytics, the new SDK features enhanced error handling. In short, all classes of error responses will now receive SDK support and documentation. Facebook says that the “SDK will now automatically categorize errors by common application handling behavior and provide helpers to simplify some common error response cases.” Version 3.2 will also handle a larger number error cases, including those introduced in iOS 6.

    Version 3.2 also adds improved Web dialog support and improvements to the API. For Web dialog improvements, the SDK now integrates Web, Feed and Requests dialogs without invoking deprecated headers. As for API improvements, Facebook is adding a new FBAccessTokenData type that should make it easier to open a session from token data.

    Facebook SDK 3.2 for iOS is fully backwards compatible, and is open to your feedback at Facebook’s StackOverflow page. You can grab version 3.2 of the iOS SDK here.

  • BlackBerry 10 Browser Speeds Ahead Of Competition

    BlackBerry 10 officially launches at the end of this month. As such, more details about RIM’s hardware and software are starting to leak out. We already got a good look at the Z10 on Tuesday, and now the phone’s browser is being put to the test. Spoilers: It’s fast.

    In a series of videos from GadgetMasters, a BlackBerry 10 Dev Alpa B’s browser speed is put against the browsers of an iPhone 5 running iOS 6 and a HTC 8X with Windows Phone 8. Both devices are lauded for their speedy browsers, but how do they hold up to the BlackBerry 10’s WebKit-based browser?

    Both videos illustrate that the BlackBerry 10’s browser, at least at this point, is faster than both Safari and Internet Explorer in iOS 6 and Windows Phone 8 respectively. The BlackBerry 10 browser also has a higher HTML5 score at least when compared to Windows Phone 8.

    The only thing we don’t know for sure is how fast BlackBerry 10 is compared to Android. Granted, it’s hard to test something against Android due to the variety of devices and builds. The most effective test would be to see how it stacks up to a Nexus 4 or Galaxy S III running Chrome.

    Beyond that, it’s important to note that the BlackBerry 10 phone on hand is not final hardware or software. The browser could be even faster when the device launches later this month. Of course, the browser is only one component of a smartphone, and other devices may easily beat out the BlackBerry 10 in other areas. We won’t know for sure until people get the final device in their hands and run it through a battery of tests.

    For now, however, we can say that Windows Phone 8 has been smoked by BlackBerry 10.

    [h/t: BGR]

  • Google Maps May Be Spurring iOS 6 Adoption After All

    Apple no doubt suffered some humiliation at the hands of Google this past week. Google finally released their own maps app for iOS, after Apple purged them from the ecosystem with the release of iOS 6 – and it was a huge hit. As you probably remember, Apple replaced Google Maps with their own Apple Maps, an inferior product that drew wide criticism from users.

    The silver lining for Apple regarding the Google Maps release was that maybe, just maybe it would finally push people who were on the fence into upgrading to iOS 6.

    But initially reports indicated that wasn’t the case. Google Maps’ effect on iOS 6 adoption seemed negligible, at best. Chitika found that in the first day, the adoption rate climbed less than 0.2%. Not exactly the boost that was expected.

    Apparently, we simply needed to give people time – like a couple of days. A new report suggests that Google Maps actually is having an impact on iOS 6 adoption – and it’s significant.

    This data comes to us from MoPub (via BGR) They looked at around 12,000 of the iOS applications in their network and saw an astounding 29% increase in iOS 6 adoption in the first five days after Google released its Google Maps for iPhone app.

    “We observed since the launch of Google Maps for iOS 6 a 30 percent increase in unique iOS 6 users, and we think it’s related to Google Maps,” said MoPub CEO Jim Payne. “It verifies the hypothesis that people were actually holding back to upgrade until Google Maps was available.”

    Of course, this data comes from the clients of a specific company, and the data that pegged Google Maps as an exaggerated motivator also came from a specific analytics company. The point being these are not necessarily 100% representative of all iOS users at large.

    But it does suggest that iOS 6 adoption was spurred on by the re-addition of Google Maps to the iOS ecosystem – eventually.

    Google Maps for iPhone app was a big hit among iOS users in general. That we can be sure of. Google says that it saw over 10 million downloads in its first 48 hours in the App Store.

  • Google Maps App Hasn’t Really Made People Flock to iOS 6

    Last week, Google finally launched their native maps app for iOS and users rejoiced. Apple Maps, the map product the company introduced with the launch of iOS 6, has been plagued with a variety of issues – most recently being accused of posing a risk to users’ health. The launch of the undeniably superior Google Maps for iPhone was seen as a positive for users and for Google, who can now develop an ad product for the app (if they so chose).

    But we also told you how Google Maps could be good for Apple in one particular way. Some analysts believed that the introduction of Google Maps for iOS could boost interest in iOS 6 and possibly spur adoption rates. Maybe, we thought, people who had been holding out on downloading the OS update because of Apple Maps would now do so considering they now have a viable alternative.

    Well, that idea is being busted. Four days after the launch of Google Maps for iOS, there has been barely any boost in iOS 6 adoption – definitely not enough to call it significant.

    The data comes to us from Chitika, who says that iOS adoption is at 72.94% not that Google Maps is available. Sounds high, right? I mean, it is a pretty high adoption rate. But the rate before the Google Maps iOS app was released stood at 72.77%. So at least for the time being, Google Maps has pushed the iOS 6 adoption rate up less than 0.2%.

    So, either people updated to iOS 6 once they knew Google Maps was on the way (it was widely publicized) or it simply hasn’t had an affect on iOS 6 adoption at all. A previous study determined that Apple Maps wasn’t really a problem for most users, and it looks like the deterrent effect of Apple Maps and the promotional effect of Google Maps may have both been exaggerated.

    [via TechCrunch]

  • Google Maps for iPhone is Good for Apple, Bad for Apple

    Yesterday’s launch of Google Maps for iPhone is clearly a win for iPhone users. Apple Maps, despite being rather pretty, failed when it comes to what really matters. Misplaced landmarks, improper directions, life-threatening errors – the problems were frequent and well-documented. Finally, Google has swooped in with their maps product that draws on superior data obtained from years of improving the product. Of course it’s not perfect, but it’s pretty damn good.

    And it’s clearly a win for Google. Of course they get to stick it to Apple by coming in and saving the day – but for Google it’s more about money. The launch of their native maps app for iOS means one big thing: ads, ads, and ads. Not only ads, but ads based of locations data (it’s a maps app, remember?).

    But according to one analyst, the launch of Google Maps for iPhone is a mixed bag for Apple.

    First, the bad. Not only is Apple forced to accept the fact, once and for all, that they failed in rooting Google from their operating system (which was one of the main points of developing their own maps app in the first place), but it’s now going to be harder to make that maps product better.

    “Users’ input is critical in improving the quality of the application, and Apple will now receive less feedback on its own Maps app what with iPhone owners flocking to Google Maps,” says Needham & Company’s Charlie Wolf.

    He’s right, of course. In the wake of the initial Apple Maps hullabaloo, Tim Cook told iOS users that they were better off using a competing maps product, as Apple Maps simply wasn’t up to their standards. He also asked users to help them make the app better by submitting feedback and letting them know where they screwed up. If tons of people switch over to Google Maps, millions of little unpaid scouts leave Apple’s employ.

    Then again, Wolf points out the there is a silver lining for Apple – more interest in the iPhone 5 and iOS 6.

    “It has the potential to attract a meaningful number of new users to the iPhone who had previously shunned it because of Apple’s well-publicized misstep in releasing a less-than-market-ready product in the first place.”

    There’s a chance we’ll hear plenty of the “I can finally get the iPhone 5 (or upgrade to iOS 6) now that there’s Google Maps on it” sentiment over the coming weeks. A recent study did find that Apple Maps’ problems weren’t really a hinderance to people’s desire for the iPhone 5, however.

    Whatever the effect on Apple, we at least know that it’s going to have an effect. Google Maps for iPhone is already making a big splash; it’s the top app in the App Store right now and has been since about 7 hours after its launch.

    [via AppleInsider]

  • Google Maps for iPhone Arrives as Your Knight in Shining Armor

    If you’ve been waiting to be rescued from the evil Apple Maps (and didn’t make a product switch when Tim Cook told you to), you are in luck – as your white knight is here. Google has just launched the all new Google Maps app for iOS.

    This is the first native iOS maps app from Google since Apple kicked them out of iOS 6 and replaced them with (Apple’s) own maps product. That hasn’t really gone so well, as you may have heard (or experienced).

    Here’s what Google has to say about their brand new maps app:

    “The app shows more map on screen and turns mobile mapping into one intuitive experience. It’s a sharper looking, vector-based map that loads quickly and provides smooth tilting and rotating of 2D and 3D views. The search box at the top is a good place to start—perhaps by entering the name of a new and interesting restaurant. An expandable info sheet at the bottom shows the address, opening hours, ratings and reviews, images, directions and other information.”

    On first glance, it is pretty. It’s no prettier than Apple Maps’ interface, but hey – that was never the complaint to begin with. The readily available location information is also a nice touch.

    Of course, with Google Maps, you’re getting everything you know and love about Google Maps – 360 degree Street Views, indoor Street View with over 100,000 businesses across the world. But with this new release, iOS users are finally getting voice-guided turn-by-turn navigation, a feature previously reserved for Android users.

    For developers, Google is also releasing the Google Maps SDK for iOS alongside the maps app. With the Google Maps SDK, devs can easily insert the new Google maps into their iOS apps.

    “The SDK features vector-based maps that load quickly, allowing users to easily navigate 2D and 3D views, rotating and tilting the map with simple gestures inside your app. Developers can also change the Google maps view to include information such as traffic conditions, and control camera positions in 3D,” says Google.

    You can apply for an API key here.

    The app, which is available in over 40 countries and 29 languages, is ready to download in the App Store today. You definitely wouldn’t be the first. The app is already the number one free app in the world, garnered a five star rating with over 8,100 reviews in about eight hours. You may want to grab it before you start that road trip across Australia. Or, maybe not.

  • Apple (Partially) Fixes Australian Map Issue

    It appears that Apple has made some adjustments to their beleaguered Maps product after it was accused of leading Australian motorists into a prickly situation.

    Yesterday we told you that local police in Mildura were warning people to be wary of Apple Maps when attempting to navigate to their town, as the directions were a little bit less than ideal. By that I mean Apple Maps was leading people into the middle of a desolate national park.

    Instead of being directed to Mildura, motorists were being taken to the middle of Murray-Sunset National Park, and 6330 sq km park in Victoria, northwest of Melbourne.

    “Tests on the mapping system by police confirm the mapping systems lists Mildura in the middle of the Murray Sunset National Park, approximately 70km away from the actual location of Mildura,” said police.

    Although Murray-Sunset sounds nice enough, the park features some remote areas where people were reported to have become stranded, without food or water. The temperature can reach a scorching 114 degrees Fahrenheit at times, and police said that at least one person had to be rescued from the area after walking a good distance to find cell reception. Apparently, the news stories that declared Apple’s product a danger to human life did their job, as Apple has made an overnight correction to their Maps.

    But it hasn’t totally fixed the problem.

    According to The Australian, Mildura police inspector Simon Clemence says that Apple has fixed the routing issue for people coming from South Australia. But…

    “If you’re coming from Melbourne it still puts Mildura in the middle of the Murray-Sunset National Park,” he said. “They have half-fixed the problem. So, it would appear that the only people that are going to get lost in the middle of the Murray-Sunset National Park now are people from Melbourne. People from Adelaide will find their way to Mildura just fine.”

    Apple Maps have been chastised for their errors since the launch with iOS 6. They are so problematic that CEO Tim Cook felt the need to apologize for them and suggest that people use other mapping options until Apple can work out the kinks. As long as they are leading people dozens of miles into the scorching-hot bush, it will probably be a while until users feel comfortable using Apple’s first stab at a maps product.

    We’ve reached out to Apple for comment but have yet to hear back.

  • Apple Maps Now Stranding People in the Middle of Nowhere, Australia

    UPDATE: Apple has partially fixed the problem.

    ORIGINAL ARTICLE: Yeah yeah, we all know that Apple Maps suck. But apparently the problem is worse than adding a few extra minutes to your commute or getting you lost in an unfamiliar city. According to reports, Apple Maps are stranding motorists in the middle of nowhere without food or water.

    The news comes out of Australia, where local police in Mildura are asking motorists to stay away from Apple Maps. In the past few weeks, police have had to rescue “distressed motorists” who found themselves stranded inside the Murray-Sunset National Park, a 6330 sq km park in Victoria, northwest of Melbourne. Police say that people were trying to reach Mildura, but were led astray by Apple’s new maps product inside iOS 6.

    “Tests on the mapping system by police confirm the mapping systems lists Mildura in the middle of the Murray Sunset National Park, approximately 70km away from the actual location of Mildura,” they said.

    According to the report, police have actually had to assist a stranded motorist that had walked a long way through the park in order to find reception. More than one person had been out there for 24 hours without food or water. Police warn that a lack of water supply plus temperatures that can reach 46 degress Celsius (114 degrees Fahrenheit) can make someone’s time out in the Murray-Sunset National Park a dangerous one.

    When Apple Maps launched with iOS 6, the negative reviews began pouring in almost instantly. The backlash was so bad that CEO Tim Cook felt the need to issue a public apology for the product’s shortcomings. He suggested that until Apple works out the kinks, people should use Google Maps, Waze, Bing Maps, and more competing products.

    This is a serious problem for Apple. It’s one thing to be led to the wrong house or to a businesses’ old location or something. It’s another thing to be led 43 miles out in the middle of the desert. We’ve reached out to Apple for comment and will update this article accordingly.

  • Siri Gets Movie Ticket Purchasing In Upcoming iOS Update

    When Apple launched iOS 6, it came with some enhancements to Siri. Amont those enhancements were the ability to get Siri to bring up movie reviews and showtimes. In an update to the operating system, iOS 6.1, Siri will go a step further in the movies department.

    According to a report from 9to5Mac, which cites developers who are beta testing the new version of the OS, Siri will go so far as to let you purchase tickets. It does so through Fandango, if you have the app installed on your device. If you don’t have it installed, it will reportedly bring up a button to download it. Good news for Fandango.

    Siri movie ticket purchases

    To activate this functionality of Siri, you can reportedly say things like, “Three tickets to see Brave,” “Buy four tickets to see Toy Story 3 tonight in San Jose,” “Two tickets to Tangled at the City Theater at 9pm,” or “Two tickets to that new Pixar movie.” These commands come from the actual Siri info menu.

    It sounds like you can use a pretty broad range of command styles and get it to work, although this is always the kind of thing you have to see in action before you can really give it too much praise. It all sounds wonderful in theory, but as many Siri users know, she doesn’t always get the point right away.

    The functionality will only be available in the U.S. at first. According to 9to5Mac, it is also not compatible will all movie theaters, so it may not be quite as useful as it should be. Of course, it is still in beta, so there is room for improvement.

    image via 9to5Mac

  • iOS 6.0.1 Update Coming Soon, Fixes Annoying Glitch

    It shouldn’t be long until iOS users receive the first update to the system. According to BGR, their “reliable” Apple sources have confirmed that Apple is in the process of testing the build with various U.S. carriers. That means that we should have the update shipped within the next few weeks.

    iOS 6.0.1 will first and foremost fix a glitch that has plagued iPhone 5 users since its launch. An Apple thread exploded with users complaining that their phones were displaying a “weird screen glitch” when the keyboard was loaded and they were inputting their iTunes password. The glitch seems limited to the iPhone 5, and happens when users access the “.?123” button on their keyboards to open up the numerical characters.

    Here’s what the horizontal lines glitch looks like in action:

    Apart from fixing that issue, BGR says that Apple will also fixing an issue with the camera’s flash not working with iOS 6.0.1. The update will fix a couple of security issues involving Passbook data being shared from the lock screen as well as a bug that allowed Exchange meetings to be cancelled for entire groups.

    We’re also getting some improved Wi-Fi support.

    It looks like iOS 6.0.1 will be the only update for a little while, as BGR’s sources say that iOS 6.1 will probably ship after the holidays.

  • Apple Maps Not a Problem for 90% of iOS 6 Users

    Despite reports that the new Apple Maps product inside iOS 6 is the worst thing to happen to smartphone users shy of submerging their device in battery acid, a majority of iOS 6-using, iPhone 5-owning people don’t seem to have a problem with it at all.

    According to a study from ChangeWave Research, 90% of users say they haven’t experienced any problems at all with Apple’s much-maligned maps product. Only 3% said that Apple Maps have been a “very big problem” for then, and 6% said they have been “somewhat of a problem.”

    As you may have heard, users have complained that Apple Maps shipped severely underdeveloped and flat out faulty in some cases. There have been reports of broken landscapes, mislabeled locations, and general incompetence when searching for directions. The backlash was so severe that Apple CEO Tim Cook had to publicly apologize for the mess, saying, “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…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.”

    Cook even recommended competitors like Bing maps, Waze, and Google maps as a holdover until they get Maps up to par.

    But according to the study, Apple Maps simply isn’t a big deal with iOS 6 adopters – especially when compared to something like the antenna problem that plagued the iPhone 4.

    “In comparison to the iPhone 4 Antenna/Reception issue, the current Apple Maps issue is of marginal concern to iPhone 5/iOS 6 users. Simply put, Apple Maps is not considered a problem by the overwhelming majority of users,” says ChangeWave.

    According to the data, Apple Maps has not affected people’s desire to purchase the iPhone 5 either. 19% of those surveyed said they were “very likely” to buy the new device, and 13% said they were “somewhat likely.” That bests the demand for the iPhone 4S gauged in a previous ChangeWave survey, which saw 10% and 11.5%, respectively.

    [h/t AppleInsider]

  • Google Maps Street View Comes To Mobile Browser So iOS Users Have Access

    Google announced today that it has added its Street View feature to Google Maps from the mobile browser. This means that iOS users who lost their beloved Maps app in favor of Apple’s newer, much criticized rendition, can once again use the feature. It also means users of other non-iOS devices can also use the feature from the mobile web, without necessarily having to use the Google Maps app.

    “Starting today, use Street View on your mobile browser to check out a new shop across town or get a feel for the ambiance at a restaurant before you arrive,” says Google Maps product manager Amanda Leicht. “To use Street View on your mobile browser simply go to maps.google.com and search for a location. Then click the ‘pegman’ icon at the bottom right of your screen to access Street View. And to view still more helpful imagery, such as a photos shared by users or interior panoramas, visit the business’ Google+ Local page.”

    Mobile Street View

    “Also, transit, driving, biking and walking directions continue to be available on your mobile browser to help you help guide you to your destination,” she adds.

    Google suggests that iOS device users save a bookmark for Google Maps to their home screen. While, Google doesn’t specifically mention the quality of Apple Maps, the idea here is that you can just as easily access Google Maps as you can Apple Maps, which many will no doubt to (if they haven’t already).

  • Facebook SDK For iOS Updated To Version 3.1.1

    Facebook recently updated its iOS SDK to version 3.1 to take advantage of iOS 6. The update brought a number of other features, but there’s still much work to be done. Facebook now has a smaller update available that you’ll want to grab as soon as possible.

    Facebook announced today that version 3.1.1 of the Facebook SDK for iOS is now available. Developers can look forward to bug fixes related to the iOS 6 native Auth Dialog, and updates for Scrumptious to better demonstrate iOS 6 integration. The update all fixes a SBJson naming conflict.

    The social network also wants to remind developers that all apps must have a valid privacy policy URL. Some developers might forget about it so Facebook is implementing an alert system in the App Dashboard that will notify developers if there is no URL. Those that choose to ignore the warning will have their app placed in Sandbox mode, but you can easily get your app back up and running by adding a URL to your privacy policy.

    With this being the first Wednesday of the month, Facebook has also announced the breaking changes that are going into effect on January 9. The first is the removal of the splash_screen_url and gamebar_image_url app properties. They are also removing all of the dashboard REST API methods. For help with this particular change, check out the documentation. Finally, Facebook will use canonical URLs when fetching data using the link_stat FQL table.

    As for the bug report, Facebook announced that 200 bugs were reported since last week. Out of thos 200, 23 were fixed and 26 were accepted for further review. You can check out the full list of bug fixes here.

  • Apple Maps Apparently Use Much Less Data Than Google Maps, So There’s That

    Ever since Apple abandoned Google Maps for their own maps in iOS 6, well, it hasn’t been good (to say the least). There have been big problems with Apple’s maps product, including broken landscapes, mislabeled locations and landmarks, and all around incompetence when it comes to navigation.

    They’ve been so disappointing that Apple CEO Tim Cook felt the need to make a public apology and recommend other maps apps for people to use while they got it together.

    But in a few weeks of bad press and terrible news for Apple Maps, there seems to be one ray of hope. Analytics company Onavo says that Apple Maps edge out Google Maps in one important area:

    Data use.

    According to tests run by Onavo, Apple Maps were about five times more data efficient that Google Maps (for iOS 5).

    “Our data experts performed an identical series of activities on Google Maps and Apple Maps that included searching for several US cities, addresses and airports and zooming in and out to locate specific locations. On Google Maps, the average data loaded from the cellular network for each step was 1.3MB. Apple Maps came in at 271KB – that’s approximately 80% less data! On some actions, such as zooming in to see a particular intersection, Apple Maps’ efficiency advantage edged close to 7X,” says Onavo in a blog post.

    Onavo attributed Apple Maps’ success in these tests to their use of vector graphics – which also led to smooth resizing and fast responsiveness.

    When it comes to satellite view, Apple didn’t quite perform as well – but they still beat Google Maps. In the tests, Apple Maps used 428KB for a single page load, compared to 930KB for Google Maps.

    For someone concerned about their data use while trying to navigate out in the world where Wi-Fi isn’t an option – consuming less of their plans inside maps apps is probably a big deal. But in the end, until Apple gets Maps worked out, a broken app that uses less data still isn’t going to make most users very happy.

  • Google: Here’s How To Use Google Maps On iOS

    Google: Here’s How To Use Google Maps On iOS

    By now, you probably know the story. Apple dropped Google Maps from its Maps app on iOS 6. People don’t like Apple’s new version so much. Apple CEO Tim Cook apologized to customers today for the lackluster product. Apple is even going so far as to recommend alternatives from the App Store.

    Google Maps, however, is not in the App Store. Still, you can use Google Maps from the the mobile web version on iOS 6. This is pretty much common sense, but Google has taken to Google+ to post some steps for using Google Maps on your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch:

    Google

    Google6 minutes ago

    Google Maps is available to everyone using any mobile browser. And this includes iOS6 users. Accessing Google Maps is really easy—just follow the steps below. 

    1. Open the Safari browser and go to maps.google.com 
    2. Tap the Share button (on the bottom middle of the screen on iPhone, at the top on iPad)
    3. Tap “Add to Home Screen”
    4. Tap “Add” in the upper right corner of the screen
    5. Now, simply tap on the icon and let Google Maps get you where you want to go!

    With Google Maps on your mobile browser, you get many of the same Google Maps features you’re familiar with, including the ability to:
    -See your current location
    -Get driving, transit, biking and walking directions
    -Turn on satellite, transit, traffic, biking and other layers
    -Search for nearby landmarks, restaurants and other points of interest
    -See clickable icons for popular businesses and transit stations, as well as detailed information such as hours of operation, Zagat scores and more
    -When signed into your Google account, access your recent searches, starred locations and My Maps

    Google Maps for mobile web browsers provides the latest features without needing to install any updates, no matter what device you use.

    90    12 Powered by socialditto

    Even Cook mentioned the web version of Google in his apology letter as possible alternative. Clearly, Apple does not want to sacrifice user experience too much, and doesn’t want to alienate customers over such an important part of the mobile experience.

    Google will likely have an actual app for Google Maps out by the end of the year, and Apple will no doubt work vigorously on improving its own offering. It will be quite interesting to see how the two are competing with each other a year from now. In the meantime, other services are getting a chance to shine, even with Apple’s help through featured App Store promotion and Tim Cook’s highly publicized letter.

  • Instagram’s iOS App is Now iPhone 5 Ready

    Instagram becomes the next major app to ship an iPhone 5-specific update, as Instagram 3.1 is available to download now. According to a blog post, Instagram 3.1 is not only updated to be compatible with the iPhone 5 and iOS 6, but also comes with improvements to accounts recovery and registration.

    First, the the account recovery. Instagram now lets you use Facebook to reset your Instagram password – in the troublesome event of a lockout.

    “If you had previously connected your Facebook account with your Instagram account, just tap “Reset using Facebook.” We’ll find the Instagram account connected to the Facebook account you’re logged into and let you reset your Instagram password. We hope this makes it easier for you to regain access to your account even if you’ve forgotten or mistyped the email address associated with it,” they say.

    Of course, you can still reset your password via email as well.

    The big part of this update though is obviously the iPhone 5 compatibility. Like many apps that have gotten a redesign to showcase the new phone, everything on the app is now tailored to the bigger 16:9 display. Although this kind of compatibility is useful in apps like Twitter or Facebook, it’s really welcomed in entirely media-heavy apps like Instagram and Netflix, which just received its own iPhone 5-related upgrade yesterday.

  • Apple: We Fell Short On Maps, But You Can Still Use Google Or Something Else

    Apple: We Fell Short On Maps, But You Can Still Use Google Or Something Else

    Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve probably either heard or experienced first hand how bad Apple’s Maps product is. Apple replaced Google Maps with its own offering in iOS 6 when it was released, and ever since, users have been complaining and pointing out numerous errors, wondering when Google will release a new iOS app.

    People will often complain about changes to the products they love, but even Apple is acknowledging how poor its product was. CEO Tim Cook has posted a letter to Apple customers on the company’s website, apologizing for the user experience, and even pointing to some alternatives.

    In the letter, Cook says users have already searched over half a billion locations with Apple’s Maps. He doesn’t say how many of those locations were actually accurate.

    Here’s the letter in its entirety:

    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

    This makes the second out of the last 3 iPhone launches that Apple has had to come out and publicly apologize for a part of. See “Antennagate”. Granted, this is really about one app, and doesn’t really reflect poorly on the device itself.

  • Google Maps Out of iOS 6 Over Voice Navigation Dispute, Sources Say

    It’s clear now that Apple jumped the gun when it chucked out Google Maps for its own mapping software in iOS 6. Since the recent OS upgrade, iPhone users have found both humor and frustration with distorted satellite images, poor directions, and missing or mislocated addresses in the new Apple Maps app.

    This week, All Things D is reporting on what it believes is the reason Apple decided to drop the feature-rich Google Maps app and put its less-developed Maps software in its place. Apparently, Apple was miffed at Google’s refusal to provide it with voice-guided turn-by-turn navigation. All Things D cites “multiple sources familiar with Apple’s thinking” as saying that the feature wasn’t part of the agreement Google and Apple had over providing Google Maps on iOS. All Things D also cites “people familiar with Google’s thinking” as saying Google has a large investment in the feature, and sees as an Android feature it issn’t willing to just give to Apple.

    Free voice-guided turn-by-turn navigation in conjunction with Google Maps has been a feature of Google’s Android operating system for years. It’s clear that the feature was badly needed for the iPhone, but Apple may have shown some hubris when it decided it could create its own Maps software. Though the iPhone’s Map app will no doubt rise in quality over the next year (Apple is hiring software engineers for that specific purpose) it will have a long way to go to catch up with Google Maps, which has 7,100 employees working on it.

  • If You Miss Google Maps On iOS, Bing Thinks You Should Use Bing Maps

    Google Maps and its disappearance from iOS have been in the news a lot over the past week or so, and lots of other companies are stepping up pointing to their own maps offerings. Microsoft is the latest, and is now going around reminding people that they can use Bing Maps from the Bing app on iOS 6.

    “With all the recent chatter about mobile apps, particularly mapping in iOS 6, a lot of people are wondering which apps given them both the essential tools they need and a great experience,” a spokesperson for Bing tells WebProNews. “Well, Bing has them covered and now is a great time to download the Bing App for iPhone.”

    “The Bing App, which is free and iOS 6 compatible, helps people easily find what they need – whether it’s using voice activated search to find maps and driving directions or Bing Vision to scan and find that great bottle of wine that was shared with friends,” he adds. “Just wanted to offer a reminder that a great mapping and search option exists for iPhone users, and they don’t have to wait for it.”

    The company also put out a blog post to the same effect, though they didn’t talk about maps too much in it, other than to mention that you can “get walking, transit, and driving directions with current traffic conditions and maps,” and to show a picture of Bing Maps on an iPhone.

    Bing Maps on iPhone

    It’s worth noting that iOS users can still access Google Maps from the web via their mobile devices. There’s just not an app currently available (though it sounds like that will change within the next couple months or so).

    In other Google Maps news, the company introduced some pretty breathtaking under water “Street View” imagery today.