Apple's sixth iteration of iOS has been out in the wild for over two weeks now and although it offers a number of new and impressive features and improvements for users, it appears that it also brings with it a new way for Apple to track users and their activity levels on the device. We should all remember the uproar that was caused last year when it became common knowledge that hidden files were stored on iOS devices that contained user location data, so this latest activity monitoring is sure to ruffle some feathers.
When Tim Cook took to the stage on September 12th in San Francisco to introduce the iPhone 5, they unveiled what was essentially the worst kept secret in smartphone history. Although, we all pretty much knew what was coming with the elongated display of the sixth-generation iPhone, it didn't reduce the excitement that was associated with seeing how Apple would handle the differences in display size between previous iPhone iterations and the new device.
iOS 6 Maps has received its fair share of criticism from the customers and the press, prompting Apple to publish an apologetic letter on their official website’s landing page, and even suggesting users to use third-party alternatives until iOS 6 Maps improve.
Apple is pretty adamant that once a user opts to upgrade, they don't want them to be able to roll-back the software on their device to a previous version of iOS. In a lot of circumstances, this wouldn't be an issue, but there are a number of legitimate reasons for users wanting to downgrade to an older version, in this case, from iOS 6 to iOS 5.1.1.
iOS Maps might have been criticized ad nauseam over the past ten or so days, but that hasn't stopped iPhone and iPad users flocking to the brand-new mobile firmware from Apple. Onswipe, a firm helping websites offer a more touch-friendly interface, reports the problems surrounding iOS 6 don't seem to have prevented consumers downloading and installing en masse, and of 100,000 users sampled through the company's partner sites on Friday, an incredible 59.43% of iPhone traffic and 41.3% of iPad traffic was coming from those running the newer software.
Tim Cook's open letter, published earlier in apology to the public for Apple's shortcomings with the new Maps app of iOS 6, was certainly required to try and calm the storm which has built up over the past ten days. The letter itself wasn't particularly surprising, but Cook and Apple's decision to recommend other, rivaling apps for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch users to utilize until iOS Maps is sorted out, was a bit of an eyebrow raiser; and now the App Store echoes those recommendations made by the company's CEO.
What a contrast. While Apple's new smartphone, the iPhone 5, is reported on as the best thing since sliced bread, its accompanying software, iOS 6, cannot buy a positive review. Then again, whenever a new device and software arrive at the same time, the combination seems to jinx Apple, and this year's simultaneous release has had its usual dose of controversy.
The iPhone 5 arrived last Friday, and already in excess of five million consumers have snapped the device up, but contrary to how most electronic gadget vendors handle things, the full user guide wasn't packaged with the smartphone, but released online some hours later along with a user guide for those diving into iOS 6.
Those of you who have installed iOS 6 or purchased a device like the iPhone 5 will notice that it no longer has the YouTube application bundled as part of the OS. Google have released a fairly decent app onto the App Store, but at the moment it doesn't come with a native iPad version meaning that users needs to run it as an iPhone app on the iPad. It is also yet to be updated for the new iPhone 5.
One of the possible reasons why Apple shifted to their own mapping solution in iOS 6, besides reports suggesting that their five year long Maps license from Google had expired, is the company’s general preference to having complete and absolute control over how user’s use their products. In addition to that, data from users of maps is very valuable; data that Apple would like to keep to itself rather than hand it to a third party.
