[chrisrhoden]

Yeah, I mean, this simply isn't true.

Google's pretty clear on their motivations here. It's the same reason that they back up what you have set as your background. It's not about multiple devices, it's about fungible devices.

The result is that you log in to any fresh android device and in a few minutes it's automatically configured itself. If you wipe your device, or lose it, or whatever, replacement cost is the biggest issue.

As for the harvesting of signal strength and name of wireless networks, the user convenience is that Google Maps will work even when you don't have clear line-of-sight to GPS satellites in most places. That's pretty darn convenient.

I think it's bad that they have this data, because the potential for abuse is large, but please don't suggest that there aren't clear and benevolent reasons for these decisions. It's extremely rare that people do things with obviously dubious motives. This is clearly not one of those cases.