Mountain View, California — In the midst of Apple’s iOS 6 map debacle, Google is looking to tighten its grip on mobile maps. For users who are fed up with Apple’s Maps app that comes bundled in the new iOS 6 operating system, may rejoice now, as there is some light at the end of the tunnel. According to rumors swirling around suggest that Google is preparing to add Street View to the mobile version of Google Maps Web app this week.
According to AllThingsD, which first revealed the news said the Web giant is planning to announce the debut of Street View images to its mobile Google Maps Web app, depicted in a five minutes video comparison between Android’s Google Maps and iOS 6 Maps.
In fact, word circulating around is that from tomorrow onwards, the Street View feature will be made available on the Google Maps web app for both the iPhone and iPad hardware devices, at least according to review on Google Maps for Android by Walt Mossberg of The Wall Street Journal fame. He claims that he is already able to access Google’s new Street View function, mentioning that it “worked well, allowing me to see the locations and pan around with a finger.”
Google Maps Car… Credits: Wikimedia Commons
Here is more from Mossberg’s review:
“Google plans to announce on Thursday that it is adding its popular Street View feature, missing from Apple’s maps, to the Web version of Google Maps accessed from the iPhone and iPad. I tested this addition, which displays 360-degree photographic street views of selected locations, and interior photographic views of certain businesses, using sample links Google sent me. These links worked well, allowing me to see the locations and pan around with a finger.”
Mossberg, further claimed: “I found the Android version of Google Maps to be not only better than Apple Maps, but also better than the iPhone version of Google Maps that Apple dropped. The biggest advantage over the former iPhone version, and the straw that apparently broke the camel’s back for Apple, was that the Android version of Google Maps, but not the old iPhone version, has long included free, voice-prompting, automatic turn-by-turn navigation. Apple added that ability to its Maps app.”
Street View on Google’s Android map app… (Credit: Google)
However, it is true that turn-by-turn navigation was bundled to iOS 6 Maps. But, at the same time, Apple unexpectedly discarded a number of things, such as accuracy, reliability, and more.
That said, Mossberg did find some flaws in Google Maps. We ourselves found one recently, in which a business was said to be located at a different intersection that it actually was at.
As a matter of fact, when Apple opted to dismiss Google Maps from its recent iOS 6–essentially forcing customers to use its own native app–many users got up in arms. Complaints about Apple Maps include inaccurate data, lack of details, distorted images, and erroneous directions.
However, with so many negative response to iOS 6 last week, Apple CEO Tim Cook addressed the growing furor over the beleaguered map app and said he was “extremely sorry” for the frustration felt by customers and vowed to improve the program.
In his apology, Cook directed users to its competitors’ apps, including Bing, MapQuest, Waze maps apps, or using Google or Nokia’s map Web sites while the company works to improve its own app.
Well! It seems that Google is now dipping its toe at just the right time — upping its Web version of Google Maps — to show that it will continue to strive to have the most user-friendly and reliable mapping system.