Apple with its own mapping services started selling most awaited iphone5 with iOS6. According to the reviews of the customers, the newest map service has certain geographical errors, examples include satellite maps that only show cloud cover, towns located in the wrong place, missing bodies of water, absent roads, incorrectly spelt place names and suggested driving directions that would take users on odd routes. In addition some of the 3D rendered images look bizarre including a flattened Eiffel Tower.
Apple CEO Tim Cook has posted a public letter to Apple’s website in order to apologize for the backlash caused by iOS 6 Maps. In the letter, Cook writes that Apple “fell short on this commitment” to make the best products for its customers, suggesting that customers can use alternatives from the App Store like Bing, Mapquest, or Wazem or they can use the mobile websites for Google or Nokia.
Apple’s Other Public Apologies
For EPEAT certification, July 2012
Apple decision on not getting EPEAT certification(Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool) for apple products, when word reached the public, the ensuing criticism prompted Apple to reconsider. “We’ve recently heard from many loyal Apple customers who were disappointed to learn that we had removed our products from the EPEAT rating system,” wrote Apple hardware senior VP Bob Mansfield in an open letter. “I recognize that this was a mistake.” Mansfield said that “all eligible Apple products” would once again be submitted to EPEAT.
For crashing of Mac due to Thunderbolt Update, June 2012
After releasing Thunderbolt Update 1.2 on June 11, 2012, some Apple customers reported that their Macs were crashing or get frozen. Eight days later, the company said that it had discovered “an installation compatibility issue with a previous Thunderbolt update applied by some customers” and apologized “for the disruption caused to the customers with affected Macs.”
For Charging OS X Lion Buyers Multiple Times, July 2011
Some Apple customers who bought OS X Lion from the Mac App Store last year got charged several times for the $20 operating system update. The company apologized to those affected in an email “for any inconvenience this situation may have caused.”
For iPhone 4 Supply, June 2010
Steve Jobs expressed regrets. “This is the most successful product launch in Apple’s history,” said Jobs in a statement at the time. “Even so, we apologize to those customers who were turned away because we did not have enough supply.”
For Approving Baby Shaker App, April 2009
The iOS Baby Shaker app presented users with a crying baby, which could be quieted by shaking . Doing so created crosses over the animated infant’s eyes, a sign denoting death. Facing protest threats from child-protection groups, Apple withdrew Baby Shaker from its App Store and then issued an apology. “This app is deeply offensive and should not have been approved for distribution on the App Store,” an Apple spokeswoman told InformationWeek. “We sincerely apologize for this mistake.”
