Here’s How Sneaky Google Maps is Teasing Apple

With Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) chief executive Tim Cook having been forced on Friday to release an apology about the new iOS 6 maps app, Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) decided it was a good day to rub it in further. The search company announced the addition of high-resolution imagery, including a new 45-degree view, and improved data to its own mapping service.

“Our quest to create the most comprehensive and accurate map of the world is ongoing, but we’re happy to take a pause and share some impressive progress that our Google Maps and Earth imagery teams have recently made,” Google geo data specialist Bernd Steinert said in a blog post on Friday. “We’ve refreshed the high resolution aerial and satellite imagery for many places around the world, and released some new 45 degree imagery as well.”

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Both the Google Maps and Google Earth apps now feature 17 cities and 112 countries with high-resolution aerial and satellite imagery. In addition, 51 cities can now be viewed in a 45-degree mode. That includes 37 cities in the U.S. and 14 international locations. While the images cannot be rendered in three dimensions, unlike Apple’s Flyover feature, the new angle allows for a clearer view.

In his publicly issued apology on Friday, Cook acknowledged the user frustration of the last few days and recommended a variety of rival applications that customers could use as Apple worked on improving its software. The web version of Google and Nokia (NYSE:NOK) maps, as well the Microsoft’s (NASDAQ:MSFT) Bing app, were part of the list of suggestions.

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