Bright Side of iOS6 Maps

There has been lots of justified bashing of Apple for the new, prematurely released mapping system in iOS6.  Last week I saw iOS6 for the first time on my son's iPhone 4 and now my iPhone 4S.  Several observations:

• The Mapping systems failures have been well document elsewhere. All you have to do to see the problem is to go to Paris and look at the Eiffel Tower lying on it's side.
  
• I edit a monthly newsletter for our church.  One of the features each month is a different photo of the church.  So, when trying out the new iOS 6 maps, I went to the corner of Newbury and Berkeley Streets in Boston to see how Church of the Covenant looked.  I was amazed at the complete 3D rendering from aerial photographs as well as the ability to circle around the building at a 300 foot elevation by moving two fingers on the display to see the exact position you want. 

• These 3D views are the best I have seen on the Internet.  Google has 3D renderings of cities, but they are not as good because they are 3D models draped with aerial imagery.  Look at the side by side comparison of the same scene below from my iPhone 4S:

Apple iO6 Map Viewer

Apple iO6 Map Viewer

Google Earth

Google Earth

The 3D detail in the left picture is far greater than the one on the right.  The left picture must currently be the best Google can do since this is how it appears both on my iPhone as well as on their Website.  It's possible that the rendering on an Android phone is better than the left photo, but I doubt it.

In some sense this stumble is a good thing for Apple.  With Tim Cook's apology last week, Apple has been introduced to the idea of humility.  Apple also has a lot of money to put behind fixing this black eye.  Finally, from what I see in the comparison above, as well as the comparative experience of navigating in 3D in the iOS 6 Map Viewer versus Google Earth, I think for this particular corner of Boston, Apple produces a better rendition of reality.