Yesterday at WWDC, Apple showed off iOS 6 for the first time, and we've got everything you need to know about iOS6. You'll find a brand new Maps app with turn-by-turn navigation, shared Photo Streams, new FaceTime features, and much more. iOS 6 was available for developers as of yesterday.
Apple launched its own Maps app in conjunction with iOS 6, and one of the new highlight features is turn-by-turn navigation. In addition to the standard turn-by-turn directions, and a "Quick Route" button on search results, you'll also be able to get directions from Siri. You can tell Siri where to navigate you, or even ask "are we there yet?" and find out how long it'll be before you arrive. Everything works from the lock screen, too. There's a persistent ETA at the top of the screen, and has a look and feel much more elegant than any existing GPS software we've seen before. It's all baked into Apple's new mapping system, one of the biggest announcements from today's WWDC keynote.
Apple has been using Google Maps since it launched the iPhone in 2007. Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt even joined Steve Jobs on the stage during the handset’s announcement. The two companies’ relationship has dwindled, however, with the success of Google’s own Android mobile operating system that competes directly with the iPhone. A new report from 9To5Mac suggests that the next major version of Apple’s mobile operating system, iOS 6, will feature an in-house maps application, ending the Cupertino-based company’s reliance on Google Maps. According to the website’s anonymous sources, the application is said to be similar to iOS’s current Google Maps program, however it was described as both cleaner and faster, and will deliver a more reliable experience and an enhanced 3D mode. Apple’s in-house service will reportedly be based on mapping technology it acquired from purchasing Placebase, C3 Technologies and Poly9.
