Google Said to Be Readying iOS 6 Native Maps
A set of mysterious screen shots that surfaced on Sunday are reported to belong to an alpha version of a native Google Maps app running on an iPhone 5. If the whole Apple Maps fiasco is getting you down, take heart. If a recent rumors is to be believed, Google's hard at work on a native version for iOS 6. According to San Francisco developer Ben Guild, the application is vector-based, features two-feature rotation to any angle, and supports the full 4-inch screen height of the iPhone 5. Right now, there's no word on whether the updated app will feature turn-by-turn navigation, a feature that's been present on Android phones for some time, but which never made it to iOS. It would be surprising if it did, since Apple’s decision to pull Google from iOS 6 was reportedly prompted by the latter's refusal to provide the feature free of charge. And how long can we expect to wait? The process of taking a program from alpha testing to a consumer-ready version typically takes a few months. However while the app is new, a lot of the programming behind it is not, so don’t be surprised if it arrives a lot sooner.
