Apple site stops calling iOS 6 Maps ‘most powerful mapping service ever’

Today in Apple’s iOS 6 Maps soap opera, the company has apparently toned down the hyperbole on its website describing the new maps application, following a public apology from chief executive Tim Cook yesterday.

Apple’s website previously described Maps with the following language:

Designed by Apple from the ground up, Maps gives you turn-by-turn spoken directions, interactive 3D views, and the stunning Flyover feature. All of which may just make this app the most beautiful, powerful mapping service ever.

But sharp-eyed tech writer Amit Agarwal noticed this morning that Apple changed the second sentence of that copy to read: “All in a beautiful vector-based interface that scales and zooms with ease.”

It’s not a major change, but together with Tim Cook’s recommendation to use competitor’s map apps yesterday, it seems like a surprisingly humbling maneuver for Apple. The company can’t truthfully call its Map app the “most powerful mapping service ever” with all of the errors users are seeing, especially when better alternatives are just a few clicks away.

Apple yesterday also started highlighting alternative map applications on the App Store, including Bing, Waze, and Mapquest. Cook also recommended web apps like Google’s web-based version of Google Maps. An official Google Maps app for iOS is reportedly in the works and should be released by the end of the year.