iPhone 5 sales not hit by Apple Maps woes: Analyst

Users of the iOS6 operating system have been facing major issues with Apple’s Maps application since it was launched last month. This prompted Apple CEO Tim Cook to issue a statement apologising for the poor user experience dished out by the default map application of iOS6. A report by CNET quotes an analyst as saying that the demand for the latest iPhone, the iPhone 5 will not be affected despite the bad publicity gained by Apple Maps.

According to the report, Sterne Agee analyst Shaw Wu has stated that the demand for the iPhone5 continues to be high despite the under-par Maps service present on its operating system. “Sales of the iPhone 5 have been unfazed by the Apps Maps debacle, according to analysts. Demand for the new phone apparently continues to run high, as supply-chain manufacturing plans remain unchanged, says Sterne Agee analyst Shaw Wu. Apple still estimates a ship time of three to four weeks for the iPhone 5. Complaints over the many mistakes in Apple Maps have surfaced since the app debuted two weeks ago. But Wu sees this as a short-term problem, and one that may have been unavoidable. Since Maps is software-based, the analyst is confident that Apple will make the program “more powerful and refined” over time. Google Maps has been touted as a better solution, especially since it was kicked out to make room for Apple Maps. But Google’s product had its own growing pains, Wu noted.”

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Apple iPhone 5 continues to do well

The analyst stated in a research note, “People forget that Google Maps started out inferior to Yahoo Maps and Mapquest. From our understanding, Apple had no choice but to produce its own Maps as Google wanted to keep turn-by-turn navigation unique to Android. We see this as short-term pain for longer-term gain.”

The CNET report goes on to state that both Apple and Google had argued over the spoken turn-by-turn directions on the Maps app, as the former wanted it incorporated on its devices using the latter’s iOS app. However, Google wanted to keep this feature unique to only Android devices. He wrote that Google wanted more branding in the app as well as the Google Latitude feature, which helps in locating friends. Apparently, these options proposed by Google did not sit well with Apple, and this led it to build its own Maps application.

The report also states, “Wu also feels that Apple made the right move by admitting its mistake with the Maps app and pointing people to alternate third-party apps. “At the end of the day, Apple’s goal is to produce the best user experience possible and as a leading platform, third-party support is essential,” Wu said”.

Here is a quick look at the specifications of the iPhone 5:

• 4-inch, 326ppi Retina display at 1136 x 640 pixels
• GPRS, EDGE, EV-DO, HSPA, HSPA+, DC-HSDPA, LTE and Wi-Fi
• GPS
• Bluetooth
• 8-megapixel camera with 1080p HD recording, 720p front-facing camera
• 16GB, 32GB and 64GB versions