"Who's really going to gripe too loudly over a Mapping app?" Was probably the last comment made before replacing Google maps with a slightly inferior product. And it's that last clause that's the crux of the whole thing, isn't it? An inferior product. Part of consumer trust is the belief that a company will always replace products and software updates with superior products. If that contract gets broken, even in the most minute ways, it calls everything else into question. The fact that Tim Cook would appear not to understand that throws Apple's future releases into question. A Macbook Pro costs three times what I'd pay for a comparable PC, but it's a premium I gladly pay given that I trust Apple products and service guarantees to be exceptional in every way. But the slightest doubt would quickly cause me--has caused me--to re-assess my Apple fetish. All because of the philosophical implications of the Map switcheroo.