Samsung ad pokes fun at Apple Maps while Australian cops say Google Maps is also unreliable

Samsung's marketing team in Australia has come up with an ad poking fun at Apple Maps after a location error in the software left motorists stranded in a scorching hot national park.

Samsung in Australia has been quick to capitalize on the recent Maps embarrassment suffered by Apple when cops in the country warned motorists against using the Cupertino company’s software because of “potentially life-threatening” data inaccuracies.

As reported by Cnet, the Korean tech giant had a little dig at Apple in downtown Sydney this week, setting up a tent and other bits of camping equipment alongside a muddied off-road vehicle. A sign placed in front of it read, “Oops, should have gotten a Samsung Galaxy S III. Get navigation you can trust,” pointing out that the S3 comes pre-loaded with Navigon Australia sat nav software, usual price $60.

The humorous ad comes days after police in the south of the country told motorists to avoid using Apple Maps for trips to the small town of Mildura in Victoria as the software was erroneously placing it inside a national park, 43 miles (70 km) from its real location. A number of travelers using Maps had reportedly become lost and stranded in the scorching hot national park. Police went so far as to say it could lead to a “potentially life-threatening” situation.

Following widespread coverage in the media, Apple moved quickly to fix the Mildura error.

Apple’s latest Maps-related embarrassment likely had more than a few Android users – who can use Google’s map app on their device – chortling with delight, but they should perhaps take note. Police in Melbourne have just piped up to say Google’s software is also causing problems for motorists. According to an ABC News report on Wednesday, Google Maps has been directing traffic down a narrow one-way track close to the country’s famous Great Ocean Road – which means all traffic, including trucks, buses and tourist vehicles.

Sergeant Nick Buenen told ABC News the track wasn’t built for heavy vehicles and that the error is a “significant safety issue for tourists and locals.”

Speaking of Google Maps, the Mountain View company released an all-new Maps app for the iOS platform overnight after the old one was removed by Apple in September.

[Images: Cnet Australia]

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Kantar: Android still dominating Europe while Windows Phone maintains steady heading

Windows Phone has remained on a steady climb, according to data published by Kantar WorldPanel, and sits comfortably at 5% of the EU smartphone sales (for the last 12 weeks). We've previously covered Kantar data where Windows Phone was shown to be climbing in the US earlier this year. With Windows Phone 8 just around the corner, and the announcements of Windows Phone 7.8, we assumed sales would have stumped the past few months.

It seems this has not been the case and Microsoft's mobile platform is surviving just fine in the run up to the next major advancement in its roadmap. Dominic Sunnebo, global consumer insight director at Kantar Worldpanel ComTech, explains the situation of both Android and Windows Phone in the EU:

"Android continues to dominate the European market in the build up to the iPhone 5 release, increasing its share by 20.2% in the past year. Surprisingly, Windows has managed to maintain its 5% share despite a raft of new Windows 8 products being announced. However, this has been achieved through heavy discounting."

We have seen an increase in discounts and special offers for Windows Phones - though Nokia smartphones have continuously enjoyed attractive price tags at carriers and retailers since being launched. Although consumers would find Windows Phones more appealing with cheaper offers available, we couldn't help but wander if consumers were actually looking at the platform as a serious contender.

Analysing the data supplied by Kantar WorldPanel, it reveals that Brazil has seen the largest percentage increase in sales for Windows Phone in the last 12 weeks, at a whopping 10.3% (compared to August 2011). That's more than both RIM and iOS combined. With Symbian being the prominent platform, it makes sense that Nokia is working hard to ensure consumers in the region pick up low-end Lumia hardware to experience what Windows Phone has to offer at affordable prices.

Sunnebo continues to note that:

"However, bigger screens don’t just lead to an improved consumer experience; they also play a key part in customer retention. ComTech data shows that the more engaged consumers are with their device, the more likely they are to stay loyal to an OS/brand when they upgrade."

This is where Windows Phone shines as an operating system. Consumers enjoy the social integration, the UI, the uniqueness and speed of the experience that's present on each and every Windows Phone. While it's down to OEM partners to pump out great hardware, it's positive to see Microsoft hitting the nail on the head on the software side.

As well as Brazil, Kantar data also shows a slight increase in sales (compared to 2011) percentages in other EU countries, including Great Britain (2.1%), Germany (0.7%), France (2.0%), Italy (3.2%), but saw retraction in Spain (-1.0%). The US is also performing well in the competitive market at just -0.1% change from last year, now sat at 3.3% of total smartphone sales.

Depending on how accurate the data is, it shows Windows Phone is positively climbing in smartphone sales, and this is during the transition between Windows Phone 7.x and 8.x - not bad, eh?

What are your thoughts on the published figures? Let us know in the comments.

Source: Kantar WorldPanel

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