Google Latitude Arrives For the iPhone — As a Web App

An anonymous reader writes "After months of waiting, the Google Latitude social maps service finally arrived for the iPhone ... but thanks to an Apple rejection of the natively developed app, it's a web app. Says Google on their blog, 'We worked closely with Apple to bring Latitude to the iPhone in a way Apple thought would be best for iPhone users. After we developed a Latitude application for the iPhone, Apple requested we release Latitude as a web application in order to avoid confusion with Maps on the iPhone.' But it gets worse for iPhone users: 'Unfortunately, since there is no mechanism for applications to run in the background on iPhone (which applies to browser-based web apps as well), we're not able to provide continuous background location updates in the same way that we can for Latitude users on Android, BlackBerry, Symbian and Windows Mobile.' Latitude has been sprouting new features lately and is an interesting take on social networking, but it looks like Apple is determined to ensure its users only get a seriously crippled implementation compared to the Android and WinMo versions. PC World put it less politely than Google did, saying, 'Google's new Latitude Web app for iPhone is so hamstrung that Apple customers may be wishing they had a BlackBerry or Android handset instead.'"

Comments

Re:Look into the crystal ball

[Yetihehe]

The competition will, as always, be one step behind. Following the leader is a losing game. Google is doing a great job in trying to change the rules with Android, but unlike Apple, OEMs using Android simply don't understand the user as well as Apple does.

Yeah, because users don't really like recording video or sending mms. Or running IM in background. I know for all current smartphone users having only screen keyboard is the best possible thing, but I'll never buy an iPhone, just because it's keyboard is good only for lolcats. Even on numeric keypad inputting one long number without error (required in some teleaudio systems or when registering one program through phone) is hard, I've tried 3 times unsuccessfully until one coworker read numbers from screen and I was occupied only with entering them, otherwise there is too many errors. Text keyboard is even smaller. Nokia 6822 (my current phone) has probably the best idea for qwerty keyboard.

Re:Monopoly?

[nedlohs]

Windows itself was found to be a monopoly in the OS market having over 90% of the market, iPhones make up 10% of the "smart" phone market.

Re:Is there a way to filter out anything "iPhone"?

[mdwh2]

MMS on the Iphone? But wait - whenever people pointed out the lack of MMS before, there was no end of people crawling out the woodwork to tell us that not only was MMS not needed, but that the Iphone was better for it. It made the device simpler to use, or something like that (I never did quite follow the logic).

So does this mean the Iphone is worse, due to including MMS? Or do they concede that their logic was wrong?

you can be annoyed only towards yourself for not upgrading the firmware.

Upgrade the firmware? I prefer a phone where MMS Just Works, Out Of The Box.

Switch to BB or Android for THIS? Puh-lease!

[lightningrod220]

I'm not wishing I had a Blackberry or Android, at all. Never will. Their UI and experience are shit in comparison. And something useless like Latitude won't make me switch platforms. That author was making some pretty stupid generalizations. People aren't switching platforms due to apps on the iPhone (or not on the iPhone), but they *do* want to switch carriers in the US. Many will tell you - the moment Apple drops AT&T and goes Verizon, you're going to see a HUGE migration. Some people will be giving AT&T the ol' "fuck you and your mother" while Steve Jobs is still on stage. They're here for the iPhone, and aren't about to change phones.

NEWSFLASH: Nobody Cares

[Stiletto]

Another iPhone article, another cry-fest. So, Apple doesn't let apps run in the background. Get this: NOBODY CARES.

How many people, do you suppose, shop for a new phone, narrow their search down to iPhone and some other phone, and say, "Gee, I love the iPhone, but I won't buy it because I can't run apps in the background!" My guess: Zero.

I'm going to make another guess: By an excruciatingly large margin, most people who own iPhones don't have any idea what you are talking about when you say "run apps in the background". They don't know, they don't care, and it doesn't remotely affect their purchasing decision. It's a phone, and they have busy lives. Apple doesn't care either, since they are making money hand over fist despite this "background" pseudo-tragedy that only you seem to be passionate about.

Crying about not being able to run apps in the background is about as stupid and pointless and ridiculous as Star Wars geeks crying "Han Shot First!" Nobody cares.

So Apple is on our side this time

[Holi]

Latitude is one of the most privacy invasive apps that exists. You know something that keeps tabs of your location constantly. Apple is just making sure you actually want people to know where you are.