There aren’t just hardware rumours for Apple products doing the rounds at the moment there are software ones too. The Macrumours site is reporting that Apple is thinking of moving its mapping software in house, it currently uses Google maps for the maps on iOS. This wasn’t really going to last as they have too competing products with iOS and Android and although it doesn’t look like Google would stop them using their mapping software it leaves them in an uneasy position.
Last year Apple brought several mapping technologies including 3D mapping software from C3. It was clear at that point that Apple was going to make the move it was just a matter of when not if. It seems that iOS 6 is when they are going to make the jump, iOS 6 is likely to be previewed at WWDC next month.
All thingsD has a quote from a source claiming to confirm that Apple’s mapping solution will be in the next iOS update.
We’ve independently confirmed that this is indeed the case. Sources describe the new Maps app as a forthcoming tent-pole feature of iOS that will, in the words of one, “blow your head off.” I’m not quite sure what that means, and the source in question declined to elaborate, but it’s likely a reference to the photorealistic 3-D mapping tech Apple acquired when it purchased C3 Technologies.
9to5Mac also have an article on the matter where the did a mock of the current Google maps (left) compared to what they think the C3 maps will look like on iOS (right)
