iPhone Software

For those iPhone owners who aren't the biggest fans of Apple's home grown Maps application, take heart. The company has explicitly stated during its earnings call today that work continues on improving Maps. Apple made the decision to replace Google Maps with the launch of iOS 6.

The announcement came directly from CFO Peter Oppenheimer, who stated that Apple has "made a number of improvements to Maps over the past month and will work nonstop until Maps lives up to our incredibly high standards." No doubt Apple has Google in their sights and does not want to be considered the inferior solution.

The images we've seen so far from Apple's 3D mapping software destined for iOS 6 are nothing less than stunning. AppleInsider gives us an in-depth comparison between Apple's Flyover maps and Google Street View, which provide more insight into how the new Maps app will look on the iPhone 5.

The level of detail in cities where 3D mapping and aerial photography data exist is much better in the Apple product according to screenshots. Although Google Street View lets us see everything close up from the ground level, the aerial view provided by Apple is continuous and still allows the viewer to look down individual streets for landmarks.

Ever worry that someone is trying to spoof the origin of text messages on your iPhone? Well according to developer pod2g you should. Although the security flaw he cites is not capable of executing malicious code, it can be exploited to fake the origin of an SMS to an unsuspecting iPhone user.

Pod2g is hoping Apple fixes the problem before the final release of iOS 6. If iOS dealt with incoming text message information properly, the message would display the reply-to (spoofed) phone number as well as the actual originating phone number. As currently configured, iOS only shows the reply-to number.

Ever wonder why Apple requires an Apple ID linked to a credit card to download free apps on the App Store? Obviously it makes sense when you're purchasing something, but there are so many free apps that many iPhone owners never buy anything.

iDownloadBlog now says the latest beta of iOS 6 has dropped the requirement to sign in for free apps, meaning if you aren't interested in linking a credit card to your App Store downloads, you won't have to. This is a welcome change for many iPhone users watching their wallet, and their security.

If you're a retro video game fan you might remember playing Summer Games from Epyx. Well now you can watch the real thing on your iPhone or iPad with two new apps from NBC Olympics. Featuring everything you need to know about the London 2012 Olympic Games, the first app is called NBC Olympics.

This app will include highlights, schedules for TV and online programming, live event results, columns and features a Primetime Companion designed to be used while watching the games on TV. The second app, NBC Olympics Live Extra, will stream live events for cable, satellite and telco TV customers totaling over 3,500 hours of sporting competition.