The worldwide usage stats are here. With "supposedly" somewhat equivalent user base numbers iOS and Android, evidence that the two look pretty well in line with each other going by the charts here. http://gs.statcounter.com/#mobile_os-ww-monthly-200911-201211
I don' see how Android can have so many "activations" and yet still not be killing Apple in the worldwide stats. Even when you consider that most Android-based devices are used as feature phones and likely only using data in most countries when connected to WiFi it still seems like Android is doing poorly when they are only 8% higher than the next competitor, which is just one company's products, that doesn't sell nearly as many products as Google claims in activations. Something simply doesn't fit.
I find the US one even more interesting. It looks like both have plateaued over the past year. I'd wager that the nations Android is fairing worse against iOS are the nations that vendors selling Android-based phones are actually making their profit.
Even the typically Apple-friendly bloggers have the same opinion. For example MG Siegler said:
"It’s great. I’ve been using it all morning to get around. It’s worth it for the clearly superior place search functionality alone.
Judging from my inbox/replies/etc, it seems like a lot of folks expect me to take a shit on the app. I’m not going to do that. As I’ve always said, my only requirement to use something is that it be the best. And that’s clearly the case here.
Google Maps is superior to Apple Maps in most (though not quite all) ways. And I’m excited to have it back on the iPhone. I’ll be using it constantly."
David Pogue in his review says "Google Maps for iPhone is a home run" while also saying that with Apple Maps "You wind up with a deep mistrust of the app that’s hard to shake."
It doesn't mean that their opinions are necessarily more valid than yours or anyone else's. But your claim that "pretty much every tech blogger that uses an iPhone" wouldn't want to replace Apple Maps app with Google's doesn't seem to have much support going by what I've read.
Here ya go Hill60 in case you overlooked part of my post you quoted, but really intended to comment on it.
Google is as transparent as you can get. They clearly outline everything they are doing in their privacy agreements and you can opt out of everything, which I have done.
Except for little things like not honoring my Safari settings to block cookies (they didn't tell me they were doing that) I was geting Google cookies though I NEVER went to a Google website or used Google search. Or driving around recording people's wi-fi broadcasts. Or publishing authors' works without permission. Or etc. etc. and who knows what else that they haven't told us about yet. There will plenty more fines for Google's violations of privacy laws before too long.
Or driving around recording people's wi-fi broadcasts.
Akamai does that for location services, not Google, I thought. But is that really an invasion of privacy? All they do is find out what network is where, not anything about it or on it, right?
Have you actually done it to see what happens, maybe a screen shot? Just curious.
Hill60, If you're having some difficulty in figuring out how to turn off location and tracking in iOS6 I don't think you're alone. Most users probably have no idea that Apple sets location and tracking 'On" by default (So much for user privacy). IMO Apple is intentionally making it hard to opt out by putting the switches in odd places, areas where most users would never think to look, assuming they had any idea they needed to.
Remember how Apple took away UDID from app developers bag of tricks? Well they gave something else back to them so that your personal interests can still be used to send ads meant just for you. Of course it's said to be "anonymous tracking". You won't see Apple mention it much, but its called IDFA. If you want to read up on it at all here's a link. IMHO it's not a bad balance between user privacy and Apple needing to deliver results for advertisers and developers.
So anyway, if you want to keep every advertiser and app developer (not just Google) as far away as possible and limit their data gathering as best you can within iOS, here's where to start.
Go into "Settings" and then "General". Once in that menu click "About", then on "Advertising". You'll see "Limit Ad Tracking". Set it to "ON". Yeah I know that may not seem right to some users, but it's how you really do turn off 3rd party tracking for targeted ads. Usually when you want to turn something off you click "off". Not in this case and many Apple users will set this one wrong and wonder why personalized ads keep getting delivered. So to repeat, set this to "ON". It won't keep you from getting 3rd party ads altogether, but at least they shouldn't be based on your search activity.
But that won't deal with iAds even tho you would think it does (it should), and those are based on tracking Apple user activity too. So another step is needed to tell Apple you don't want to be tracked for their advertisers targeted ad delivery either.
Open Safari on your iDevice and go to the obscure webpage http://oo.apple.com. There's a screen there asking if you want to opt out of Interest Based iAds. Set the switch to "Off" and you shouldn't see any more ads based on your personal travels and searches. You still might get some generalized ads via Apple tho. Nothing much you can do about that.
So that does it, right? Well, not yet. One more thing you'll want to do: Turn on "Private Browsing".
To get there go back into your iDevice settings and look for Safari. Open up that menu and change Private Browsing to "ON". Apple likely had it set to 'OFF". That should send out a "Do Not Track" message to any website you visit. It doesn't mean it will always be honored (IIRC Facebook said they ignore those), but it should keep some of the cookies gathering data for targeted ads based on your personal history at bay.
One thing to note: Do Not Track is far from an accepted practice, or legally required to be honored. It's not the big guys like Google fighting against it either. You need to watch out for the smaller players.
In terms of Apple's entry into the mapping business, this is obviously an admission of partial defeat. However, prior to iOS 6, there weren't any decent free turn-by-turn apps for the platform, which was a major advantage held by Android. Entering the mapping business and kicking Google off the platform as the default mapping solution, has forced Google to make an iOS version of their Maps app that is on-par with their Android version. Even if this is the only result of Apple's mapping effort, it's a win for the iOS platform. So, Google has won the battle, but lost the war in a sense. They will have access to the data produced by iOS users, but they have lost a key advantage for the Android platform. Apple doesn't really care if they have the best mapping solution, as long as mapping and turn-by-turn is not a barrier to people purchasing iOS devices.
At 71% global market share, android does not need the minor competitive edge that the real google maps app gives. They've already won. They're an ad company that makes money on volume. To that end, it's not even a contest.
It matters if you want to advertise to rich people.
Also can we get past pretending that one quarters market share = installed base. And a traditionally weak quarter for iPhones too.
In terms of Apple's entry into the mapping business, this is obviously an admission of partial defeat. However, prior to iOS 6, there weren't any decent free turn-by-turn apps for the platform, which was a major advantage held by Android. Entering the mapping business and kicking Google off the platform as the default mapping solution, has forced Google to make an iOS version of their Maps app that is on-par with their Android version. Even if this is the only result of Apple's mapping effort, it's a win for the iOS platform.
So, Google has won the battle, but lost the war in a sense. They will have access to the data produced by iOS users, but they have lost a key advantage for the Android platform.
Apple doesn't really care if they have the best mapping solution, as long as mapping and turn-by-turn is not a barrier to people purchasing iOS devices.
I hope to see more Apple Maps innovations in the near future. It's amazing that they can deliver so quickly. Next lap is to deliver a better maps search and data. :-)
I'm surprised that Google Earth is a top app, but not that YouTube and Maps are.
Sometimes all these corporate/strategic control type things get in the way of making a good product, and that's when it has gone too far. Sure, Google has some power through controlling some vital servers, but Apple has a lot of power too, in that they control device that's in everybody's hands. It's kind of a cold-war mutually assured destruction thing and as long as neither side presses the button, the customer wins.
I should have been more clear. That is the footpath and people in my photo, but in Hill60's photo you can zoom in on and see the highway and car park. On further inspection I was also a bit overzealous with my comment about a runaway truck. Still, it does seem very close to the structure. Except for the La Brea Tar Pits in LA I can't think of any US landmark that is so close to a heavily trafficked road.
And the original app was created by Apple, not Google. The only thing Google did was provide the background data. If you want to blame someone for the dumbed down app, blame Apple.
How come when people want to praise the old Apple maps app, it's called 'Google Maps' and when they want to criticize the same app, it's suddenly attributed to Apple again???
How come when people want to praise the old Apple maps app, it's called 'Google Maps' and when they want to criticize the same app, it's suddenly attributed to Apple again???
How come when people want to praise the old Apple maps app, it's called 'Google Maps' and when they want to criticize the same app, it's suddenly attributed to Apple again???
I know I've struggled with my wording in order to be clear which one I was referring. If it's just a comment about iOS 6 Maps and Google's new App Store offering I have been using Apple Maps and Google Maps, but if I need to reference pre-iOS 6 Maps it gets a little tricker because it's Apple's Maps app but Google's backend. Perhaps we need a simple way to refer to it that can be universally known with requiring a having to write pre-iOS 6 each time.
Comments
I don' see how Android can have so many "activations" and yet still not be killing Apple in the worldwide stats. Even when you consider that most Android-based devices are used as feature phones and likely only using data in most countries when connected to WiFi it still seems like Android is doing poorly when they are only 8% higher than the next competitor, which is just one company's products, that doesn't sell nearly as many products as Google claims in activations. Something simply doesn't fit.
I find the US one even more interesting. It looks like both have plateaued over the past year. I'd wager that the nations Android is fairing worse against iOS are the nations that vendors selling Android-based phones are actually making their profit.
Quote:
Originally Posted by hill60
Nope.
Apple leaves holes for developers to fill, unlike other manufacturers (pre-iPhone) who thought they had to provide everything.
Google just filled in a hole, now Apple has no responsibility or obligation to Google as regards their App.
btw, this is interesting:-
When you do this:-
You always start here, which was puzzling at first until I switched to satellite:-
Stonehenge, well played Google, although the observatory at Greenwich would have been better.
What happens if you turn off all location and tracking services for Apple Maps?
There's no way that NOT being available on iOS is a net positive for Google.
Obviously Google was going to put this out for free if Apple let them go.
Why pay for something if they'll just give it to you?
Google got hosed.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gatorguy
Even the typically Apple-friendly bloggers have the same opinion. For example MG Siegler said:
"It’s great. I’ve been using it all morning to get around. It’s worth it for the clearly superior place search functionality alone.
Judging from my inbox/replies/etc, it seems like a lot of folks expect me to take a shit on the app. I’m not going to do that. As I’ve always said, my only requirement to use something is that it be the best. And that’s clearly the case here.
Google Maps is superior to Apple Maps in most (though not quite all) ways. And I’m excited to have it back on the iPhone. I’ll be using it constantly."
David Pogue in his review says "Google Maps for iPhone is a home run" while also saying that with Apple Maps "You wind up with a deep mistrust of the app that’s hard to shake."
It doesn't mean that their opinions are necessarily more valid than yours or anyone else's. But your claim that "pretty much every tech blogger that uses an iPhone" wouldn't want to replace Apple Maps app with Google's doesn't seem to have much support going by what I've read.
Here ya go Hill60 in case you overlooked part of my post you quoted, but really intended to comment on it.
[CENTER][IMG ALT=""]http://forums.appleinsider.com/content/type/61/id/17848/width/350/height/700[/IMG] [IMG ALT=""]http://forums.appleinsider.com/content/type/61/id/17847/width/350/height/700[/IMG] [/CENTER]
PS: I'm amazed at how close that highway is to Stonehenge. I'd think they'd want to make so a lorry that is run off the road can't hit it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gatorguy
What happens if you turn off all location and tracking services for Apple Maps?
It starts at Cupertino, Infinite Loop. I believe.
Quote:
Originally Posted by hill60
It starts at Cupertino, Infinite Loop. I believe.
Have you actually done it to see what happens, maybe a screen shot? Just curious.
Quote:
Originally Posted by NexusPhan
Google is as transparent as you can get. They clearly outline everything they are doing in their privacy agreements and you can opt out of everything, which I have done.
Except for little things like not honoring my Safari settings to block cookies (they didn't tell me they were doing that) I was geting Google cookies though I NEVER went to a Google website or used Google search. Or driving around recording people's wi-fi broadcasts. Or publishing authors' works without permission. Or etc. etc. and who knows what else that they haven't told us about yet. There will plenty more fines for Google's violations of privacy laws before too long.
Originally Posted by elroth
Or driving around recording people's wi-fi broadcasts.
Akamai does that for location services, not Google, I thought. But is that really an invasion of privacy? All they do is find out what network is where, not anything about it or on it, right?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gatorguy
Have you actually done it to see what happens, maybe a screen shot? Just curious.
Hill60, If you're having some difficulty in figuring out how to turn off location and tracking in iOS6 I don't think you're alone. Most users probably have no idea that Apple sets location and tracking 'On" by default (So much for user privacy). IMO Apple is intentionally making it hard to opt out by putting the switches in odd places, areas where most users would never think to look, assuming they had any idea they needed to.
Remember how Apple took away UDID from app developers bag of tricks? Well they gave something else back to them so that your personal interests can still be used to send ads meant just for you. Of course it's said to be "anonymous tracking". You won't see Apple mention it much, but its called IDFA. If you want to read up on it at all here's a link. IMHO it's not a bad balance between user privacy and Apple needing to deliver results for advertisers and developers.
http://apsalar.com/blog/2012/06/apples-new-advertising-id/
So anyway, if you want to keep every advertiser and app developer (not just Google) as far away as possible and limit their data gathering as best you can within iOS, here's where to start.
Go into "Settings" and then "General". Once in that menu click "About", then on "Advertising". You'll see "Limit Ad Tracking". Set it to "ON". Yeah I know that may not seem right to some users, but it's how you really do turn off 3rd party tracking for targeted ads. Usually when you want to turn something off you click "off". Not in this case and many Apple users will set this one wrong and wonder why personalized ads keep getting delivered. So to repeat, set this to "ON". It won't keep you from getting 3rd party ads altogether, but at least they shouldn't be based on your search activity.
But that won't deal with iAds even tho you would think it does (it should), and those are based on tracking Apple user activity too. So another step is needed to tell Apple you don't want to be tracked for their advertisers targeted ad delivery either.
Open Safari on your iDevice and go to the obscure webpage http://oo.apple.com. There's a screen there asking if you want to opt out of Interest Based iAds. Set the switch to "Off" and you shouldn't see any more ads based on your personal travels and searches. You still might get some generalized ads via Apple tho. Nothing much you can do about that.
So that does it, right? Well, not yet. One more thing you'll want to do: Turn on "Private Browsing".
To get there go back into your iDevice settings and look for Safari. Open up that menu and change Private Browsing to "ON". Apple likely had it set to 'OFF". That should send out a "Do Not Track" message to any website you visit. It doesn't mean it will always be honored (IIRC Facebook said they ignore those), but it should keep some of the cookies gathering data for targeted ads based on your personal history at bay.
One thing to note: Do Not Track is far from an accepted practice, or legally required to be honored. It's not the big guys like Google fighting against it either. You need to watch out for the smaller players.
http://money.cnn.com/2012/11/30/technology/do-not-track/index.html
So, Google has won the battle, but lost the war in a sense. They will have access to the data produced by iOS users, but they have lost a key advantage for the Android platform.
Apple doesn't really care if they have the best mapping solution, as long as mapping and turn-by-turn is not a barrier to people purchasing iOS devices.
It matters if you want to advertise to rich people.
Also can we get past pretending that one quarters market share = installed base. And a traditionally weak quarter for iPhones too.
I hope to see more Apple Maps innovations in the near future. It's amazing that they can deliver so quickly. Next lap is to deliver a better maps search and data. :-)
I'm surprised that Google Earth is a top app, but not that YouTube and Maps are.
Sometimes all these corporate/strategic control type things get in the way of making a good product, and that's when it has gone too far. Sure, Google has some power through controlling some vital servers, but Apple has a lot of power too, in that they control device that's in everybody's hands. It's kind of a cold-war mutually assured destruction thing and as long as neither side presses the button, the customer wins.
.
I should have been more clear. That is the footpath and people in my photo, but in Hill60's photo you can zoom in on and see the highway and car park. On further inspection I was also a bit overzealous with my comment about a runaway truck. Still, it does seem very close to the structure. Except for the La Brea Tar Pits in LA I can't think of any US landmark that is so close to a heavily trafficked road.
How come when people want to praise the old Apple maps app, it's called 'Google Maps' and when they want to criticize the same app, it's suddenly attributed to Apple again???
Originally Posted by Suddenly Newton
How come when people want to praise the old Apple maps app, it's called 'Google Maps' and when they want to criticize the same app, it's suddenly attributed to Apple again???
I know I've struggled with my wording in order to be clear which one I was referring. If it's just a comment about iOS 6 Maps and Google's new App Store offering I have been using Apple Maps and Google Maps, but if I need to reference pre-iOS 6 Maps it gets a little tricker because it's Apple's Maps app but Google's backend. Perhaps we need a simple way to refer to it that can be universally known with requiring a having to write pre-iOS 6 each time.