Tim Cook Apologizes for Maps App

In an unprecedented move (which Steve Jobs would not have done), Apple CEO Tim Cook apologized for the shortcomings of its all-new home-brewed Maps application, which replaced Google's native Maps app on iOS 5.

With iOS 6, Apple has introduced a new Maps app, in partnership with TomTom. While the new Maps app looks cool with Flyover and turn-by-turn navigation features, it surprisingly lacks a lot of stuff that iOS users are used to be getting. The new Maps app was heavily panned by users for fundamental errors in 3D mapping, traffic alerts, and transit directions, to name a few.

Tim Cook's Apology Letter (Image by Apple)

But to everyone's surprise, it was not only an apology that iOS 6 users have gotten from Tim Cook. He went further to suggest that iOS 6 users try competing applications such as Bing, Waze, and Google.

I must say that it was a bold move for Apple to apologize and admit its shortcomings when it comes to the Maps app. It was as bold as replacing Google's native iOS Maps app with Apple's own. With more than 100 million (and counting) iOS 6 users using the new Maps app, the only way for Apple to redeem itself is to come up with a better Maps app, fixing all those bugs and glitches that rendered it almost unusable.

While it would surely take time for Apple's all-new Maps app to be at par with the competition, i.e. Google Maps, getting a promise from no less than Apple's CEO would suffice for the mean time.

And yes, for the new Maps app to work better, iOS 6 users must utilize it from time to time and report errors, bugs, or glitches they have been experiencing.

In the mean time, Apple has included a section on the App Store, where you can download paid and free maps applications that you can use as an alternative to Apple's new Maps app.