Steve Wozniak says Apple Maps disappointing but issues not severe

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
Apple cofounder Steve Wozniak said on Monday that he was "disappointed" with Apple's new Maps app in iOS 6, however noted the severity of issues reported by critics and users is questionable.

Steve Wozniak
Steve Wozniak speaking in Sydney. | Source: ZDNET


Speaking at an event in Sydney, Australia for data storage company Fusion-io, at which he is chief scientist, Wozniak described his first impressions of Apple's new mapping service to ZDNET.

"I tried to navigate somewhere, and I couldn't get to where I wanted to by voice," he said. "So, I was a little disappointed, because I love navigation by voice with my Google [Android] phones, actually, since they always get it and are based on a better database."

Wozniak is not alone in having been given bad directions from the fledgling app, as users around the world have complained of incorrect positioning data, missing location information and lack of features like Google's Street View.

"I have been reading about the problems, and I don't know if they are that severe," Wozniak said.

The tech guru offered the example of "antennagate" radio reception issues faced by the iPhone 4, saying that he never really noticed the problem with normal use.

"Sometimes, there are a lot of complaints about one little thing people spot, but it's not that hard to deal with in life," Wozniak said. "I don't know yet about Maps ? I'm a little worried about the navigation, but I've still got it covered with a bunch of other navigation apps."

A number of listings posted to Apple's job website reveal the iPhone maker is hiring to fill positions for its Maps Team, pointing to ongoing development of the new mapping service. Most recently, reports claim the company is actively recruiting software engineers who previously worked on rolling out Google Maps.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 88
    Ah, the voice of reason. Maps not great but not the end of the world either.
  • Reply 2 of 88
    Why does Steve Wozniak's opinion matter?
  • Reply 3 of 88
    wizard69wizard69 Posts: 13,377member
    A rational comment! I've been using maps the last couple of days and it really isn't that bad. No error for me, but really people a database with likely hundreds of millions of entries isn't going to be perfect out of the gate.
  • Reply 4 of 88


    it's a 90/10 problem. it's just fine for 90% of the customers, but the 10% are much louder.

  • Reply 5 of 88
    All navs have their problems. I used my Garmin to navigate while also using my iPhone. Both got me there but they disagreed on which side of the road was the destination. The iPhone said the destination was on the left while the Garmin said the right. The iPhone made the correct call.
  • Reply 6 of 88

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by tomnryan View Post



    Why does Steve Wozniak's opinion matter?




    you could ask that about a lot of people.

  • Reply 7 of 88
    Can we please stop quoting every pointless comment uttered by Wozniak? Yes, he was an Apple co-founder and he's quite wealthy as a result, but let's not forget that this guy has not made a contribution to technology in over 30 years. Woz had a knack for designing more efficient motherboards back at the damn of the PC era but thing guy is by no means a visionary or an authority on technology.
  • Reply 8 of 88

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by tomnryan View Post



    Why does Steve Wozniak's opinion matter?


     


    Quote:

    Originally Posted by OllieWallieWhiskers View Post




    you could ask that about a lot of people.





     



    The difference is whether he gets quoted on all the blogs every time he utters an opinion. We're all entitled to an opinion but the media should stop quoting people whose opinions shouldn't really matter.

  • Reply 9 of 88


    So he's being a bit positive now..

  • Reply 10 of 88
    hill60hill60 Posts: 6,992member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by OllieWallieWhiskers View Post


    it's a 90/10 problem. it's just fine for 90% of the customers, but the 10% are much louder.



     


    I'd say it's a 95/5/10 problem.


     


    110%


     


    100% actual iOS users, 10% loudmouth abusers who have no intention of ever using iOS.

  • Reply 11 of 88

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by freediverx View Post



    Can we please stop quoting every pointless comment uttered by Wozniak? Yes, he was an Apple co-founder and he's quite wealthy as a result, but let's not forget that this guy has not made a contribution to technology in over 30 years. Woz had a knack for designing more efficient motherboards back at the damn of the PC era but thing guy is by no means a visionary or an authority on technology.


     


    Agree. He didn't contribute anything other than programmable "Universal Remote Control" in 1987. lol


     


    Jobs without Woz = successful


    Woz without Steve = ???

  • Reply 12 of 88
    kotatsukotatsu Posts: 1,010member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by OllieWallieWhiskers View Post


    it's a 90/10 problem. it's just fine for 90% of the customers, but the 10% are much louder.



    That might be true in the US, but in the rest of the world Apple's maps are truly awful. In my own comparisons of iOS6 maps vs iOS5 around the UK I'll just say I'm very glad I still have an iOS 5 device.The difference is truly night and day.


     


    Apple have a very long way to go to get their maps to an acceptable level. It may well take several years.

  • Reply 13 of 88
    richlrichl Posts: 2,213member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by freediverx View Post




    The difference is whether he gets quoted on all the blogs every time he utters an opinion. We're all entitled to an opinion but the media should stop quoting people whose opinions shouldn't really matter.



     


    He's famous for be one of the founders of Apple but he's also multi-talented and loves gadgets. He always comes across as level-headed. His opinion matters more than any of us here.

  • Reply 14 of 88
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    tomnryan wrote: »
    Why does Steve Wozniak's opinion matter?

    Regarding anything post Apple ][ technology I doubt it does in any real sense of depth although he has remained close as an Apple Fellow I believe. I agree with your sentiment though and I wish Blogs would stop using his opinion on anything related to Apple as if it actually carried any serious weight. Then as others have said given his history as a founder I guess they always will.
  • Reply 15 of 88
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    kotatsu wrote: »
    That might be true in the US, but in the rest of the world Apple's maps are truly awful. In my own comparisons of iOS6 maps vs iOS5 around the UK I'll just say I'm very glad I still have an iOS 5 device.The difference is truly night and day.

    Apple have a very long way to go to get their maps to an acceptable level. It may well take several years.

    Why miss out on all iOS 6 has to offer when you can add a safari home page for both google maps and youtube?

    However Google must be busting their asses to get free apps on iOS 6 since Android devices hardly seem to register on web traffic stats. Remember they live by ads and using your own data.
  • Reply 16 of 88
    Who cares what he says? Who is he? A looser, who means nothing these days. Stop quoting him.
  • Reply 17 of 88
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    yoyo2222 wrote: »
    Ah, the voice of reason. Maps not great but not the end of the world either.

    But a mapping system that showed the end of the world would seem appropriate in 2012 though ... /wink
  • Reply 18 of 88


    The type of delivery to the consumer is very un-Apple.    They are already missing Steve!!!!! 

  • Reply 19 of 88
    lerxtlerxt Posts: 186member
    Why has everyone in the US tech world missed the fact that in the same speech Steve said he had applied for Australian citizenship and want's to "call himself an Australian"? He cited the Australian Broadband Network project as one of the reasons for taking the step.
    http://m.brisbanetimes.com.au/technology/technology-news/apples-wozniak-wants-to-become-australian-20120925-26iwb.html
  • Reply 20 of 88


    Woz not relevant? Are you kidding? Aside from developing the universal remote, he formed a company to develop wireless GPS, invested in Aquicor, and numerous other tech firms through it, placing him at the forefront of funding new tech startups. He could forget more about tech than most people have ever learned, and still be far more relevant than you or I. It's easy to anonomously criticize those who actually have "been there and done that", a lot harder to actually do it yourself.


     


    On the maps issue, I agree with Wozniack. Given the capabilities of Google Maps on the iPhone gave many users reason to invest in decent GPS navigation apps, the inadequacies of the IOS6 Maps is not a life or death matter. A cloud based mapping system is hardly appealing to users where connectivity could be an issue, either in availability or cost. I suspect the majority of users will be better served by the existing crop of navigation apps, with map data stored on the device itself. I know from personal experience of driving over 100 km (60 miles) with no phone connectivity at all, so locally stored maps are crucial for many people.

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