[w1ntermute]

> But, [Maps] isn't nearly as comprehensive as Google's offerings on Android. The biggest drawback is the unfortunate lack of public transportation directions. If you haven't quite mastered New York City's subway system, you won't get any help from your iPhone 5. Curiously, the app offers to give you public transportation directions, but should you choose that option it pops you straight into the App Store with a search for "Routing Apps." Right now, there are zero results.

By itself, no public transportation directions in Maps should be a deal-breaker for anyone living in a big city. How Apple could have allowed such a huge feature regression from the 4S/iOS 5 to get into the final version of the iPhone 5 is beyond me.

[dakrisht]

Going with Maps over Google Maps is one of the worst regressions I've seen in an OS/Software in a long time. Google Map's is simply brilliant, the de-facto standard, always being improved, flawless in a sense and these guys go with their own mapping software. It really blows my mind. I'm thinking it's simple arrogance on the iOS teams part (perhaps management as well). I've read many stories of how big of an asshole Scott Forstall is and I believe them.

Apple is a great company and their really driving themselves into the ground (well, maybe not yet) with all these frivolous patent troll lawsuits (claiming shape patents, suing a grocery store in Eastern Europe), Sandboxing app, rigorous Nazi-like App store tactics (they claim quality here, yeah my ass, there are probably 300,000 of the 500,00 apps which are pure garbage). It's got to end somewhere.

Anyway, back to Maps. It's a bad move, I've been playing with Maps on iOS6 since the first Beta, I don't know what they're thinking (or even if they're thinking) and it shows the character of that company.

The lightning adaptor is also bullshit - since now everyone will have to spend $100s on adaptors and new chargers. The 24-pin, while dated, worked and was just fine. I haven't played with the new connector yet - but it looks to me like it's easy to disconnect. I remember the older 24-pin connectors had clamps so to speak on the side to lock them in place and the current ones do a good job of staying put. This connector seems very fragile and flimsy and I see it disconnecting all over the place. Again, can't make this call until I play with the device.

It's the same logic with the "new" MagSafe 2 connector. Get outta here. The Mag Safe was just fine. There was nothing wrong with (aside from maybe, the ridiculous price tag). $30 for an adapter is obscene. These things cost $1.99 to produce in China (probably less) and Apple is simply milking the fanboys and corporate "we don't care we'll buy anything Apple because it looks cool" clients. I would know, I'm the one buying $100k of Apple products every year for the company I used to work for. It's really something.

BTW, the iPhone 5 is the iPhone 4Stretched. Bigger screen and a A6 process. Come on. The 4S has an A5X, I bet the performance benchmarks are negligible between the two. Software and the placebo-effect will do a hell of a job convincing the normal user that it "feels faster."

They could have done a lot more with this phone, they didn't because they didn't have to. I don't blame them.

[ceejayoz]

> Again, can't make this call until I play with the device.

Stated right after you appear to have made the call. Ballsy.

> The 4S has an A5X, I bet the performance benchmarks are negligible between the two.

I'll take that bet. "The iPhone 5's A6 processor appears to be roughly twice as fast as any chip in an existing iOS product, if results posted by Geekbench prove to be accurate." http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-57513867-37/iphone-5-bench...

[Steko]

Just a minor nitpick out of his huge troll rant but the 4S does not have an A5X. The A5X is only in the new iPad; the 4S has the A5.

[dmishe]

>The 24-pin, while dated, worked and was just fine

Kinda like VGA ports on notebooks.

>This connector seems very fragile and flimsy and I see it disconnecting all over the place >The 4S has an A5X, I bet the performance benchmarks are negligible between the two

Read the article.

[lollerpops]

The maps change is such a big deal I can't help but think there's also some big money involved. Also gone is the youtube app. Since google makes money from ads, and the iphone apps don't have a lot of ads, was apple paying google? Did google ask for eighty bajillion dollars when it came time to renew the contract?

[stuross]

Anyone with a MagSafe 2 connector knows how inferior it is compared to the previous connector. I'm just hoping the lightning connector doesn't follow suit.

[ceejayoz]

Inferior how? I've got one, and I've yet to have trouble with it. It comes out a little easier than the MagSafe 1, but that's a good thing with twin toddlers running about.

[stuross]

The pervious MagSafe ran "flushily" out of the back of the macbook, the new one juts out and is easily dislodged. I'm I the only one that detests the new MagSafe?

[ceejayoz]

> easily dislodged

Again, isn't that the point?!

I've had both, and I'd rather have to plug it back in occasionally than have my $2k MBP smashed on the floor.

[dmishe]

I liked that previous (pre latest magsafe 1) connector because you can plug it any way. Though with magsafe2 it seems that there's a lottery involved, some people on twitter did say that new one is actually stronger

[Steko]

"By itself, no public transportation directions in Maps should be a deal-breaker for anyone living in a big city."

Perhaps because turn by turn is a bigger feature for most people so the net of + turn by turn - public trans is not on net a huge feature regression.

Most of the people reviewing this phone live or at least work in big cities and none of them cited it as a deal breaker.

[mburshteyn]

So, everyone who downloads iOS6 onto their iPhone 4/4S will have to live with this "upgrade"?

[adamstober]

Sometimes it's worth skipping the new software entirely. I think my old iPhone 3G could have been the last phone running iOS3 when I finally upgraded to the 4S. I refused to "upgrade" an iPhone 3G to iOS4 and burden the phone with an OS that the hardware couldn't handle.

As far as the article goes, I wonder why Engadget didn't list the new maps as a con. Certainly sounds like one, even in their own words.

[dakrisht]

Yes. However, Google will be releasing a Google Maps app shortly to replace the crap that is Apple Maps.

[w1ntermute]

You won't be able to designate that as your "default" Maps app though, right? So if there's an address in another app, you can't just tap on it to go straight to the Google Maps app.

[mikeevans]

With Chrome on iOS, Google might have some wiggle room. For instance, in the G+ app, if you try to open a link in a browser, you get the option to open in either Safari or Chrome. Maybe they can do something similar for Maps?

I know that doesn't really solve the issue for other apps, but I bet a good amount of address-clicking comes from the browser.

[yahelc]

Has that been confirmed? I've certainly seen that widely speculated, but haven't actually seen any confirmation that they indeed intend to do so.

[w1ntermute]

From what I understand, yes, that's correct.

You will probably be able to jailbreak and replace the Maps app with the older version. That may not come out for a month or two though.

[wahnfrieden]

Yes.