Archived version: https://archive.ph/hguLn

Excerpt (and context):

Apple Maps’ offering might surprise people who remember its disastrous launch in 2012, which the Guardian described as the company’s “first significant failure in years”. Users were more than furious – they were lost, sometimes dangerously so. In Australia, police had to rescue tourists from the huge Murray-Sunset national park, after Maps placed the city of Mildura in the wrong place by more than 40 miles. Some of the motorists located by police had been stranded for 24 hours without food or water. In Ireland, ministers had to complain directly to Apple after a cafe and gardens called “Airfield” was designated by the service as an actual airport.

But mostly the map was just glitchy and unhelpful, its directions always a little off kilter. Users revolted and Apple made a rare retreat, allowing Google Maps to be used as the default on many iPhone apps and apologizing for the product.

  • @hydrashok@sh.itjust.works
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    fedilink
    31 year ago

    Still a Waze junkie after years and years, but considering the switch to iOS later this year and would be nice to have something actively being developed to compare against, but also to fall back on if Google decides to combine the Maps and Waze team and kills off Waze entirely, which is looking ever more likely. (Google Maps is very poor in directions and UI, in my experience.)