iOS 6 Maps Flyover hacked onto iPhone 4
updated 07:31 am EDT, Mon June 18, 2012
iPhone 4 shown to be technically capable of supporting 3D Maps app
The iOS Maps app with 3D Flyover featured as a centerpiece of Apple’s iOS 6 presentation at WWDC has been hacked on to the iPhone 4 by Anton Titkov. For reasons not made entirely clear, Apple controversially opted not to support the capability in its iOS 6 update in the slightly older iPhone with critics debating whether it was due to a hardware limitation. While the performance (of the still beta) appears acceptable, it does not load quite as quickly or smoothly as it does on the iPhone 4S as the embedded video shows.
The process of installing 3DEnabler on the iPhone 4 is more complicated than simply jailbreaking a user’s device. Although iguides has posted the full set of instructions in Russian, it is not something that the average iOS user would be advised to try.
Given that the iPhone 4 has now been publicly demonstrated to be capable of running the app, it is likely that it will continue to cause consternation among iPhone 4 users. While other companies often post blogs explaining their decisions, Apple generally chooses to remain silent on these issues until an issue gains momentum in the media and they are forced to offer a statement. It may be time for Apple to adopt a similar approach so that it does not appear to be forcing customers to upgrade to the very latest device just to get the very latest features. Even if the iPhone 4 is appears to be technically capable of running the new 3D maps with Flyover, there may be other concerns that warrant its omission.
In the meantime, iPhone 4 and iPad 2 users are also left to rue the omission of Siri as well as FaceTime over 3G. While it is likely that hacks for these will also surface, users will be left to speculate why Apple chose to omit the functions. One educated guess is that battery life could be the overriding factor in the feature omissions. However, unless Apple issues public comment on the matter, speculation will remain rampant. [via Slashgear]
