Where would we be without our beloved Google Maps app? Lost, that’s exactly where. Our handy little friend Maps, gets us from A to B (usually without drama), plus it asks us if we want to avoid tolls and steers us clear of headache-inducing traffic. Thanks, Maps!
However, things are feeling a little icy right now between the user and Google Maps after a sneaky, secret update rubbed people the wrong way.
Recently, Google tested out a new feature on a select number of users’ iPhones. The feature was a calorie-counter, which showed users how many calories they’d burn if they walked from destination to destination. While some may find that an interesting or maybe even a helpful addition to the popular app, other’s were not impressed.
But what really riled up users, was the fact that the calories they would burn were translated into “mini cupcakes”. And what’s worse – the function couldn’t be turned off!
“This is absurd! And irresponsible!” one woman tweeted.
Twitter exploded into a storm of anger because, basically, it felt like our mate Google Maps was shaming us.
We turn to Google Maps when we need we need practical information and travel updates. We don’t click into the app to feel guilty about what food we may have eaten that day – there are plenty of other businesses, apps and Instagram accounts influencing those horrible food-guilt thoughts.
Happily, Buzzfeed have confirmed that due to strong user feedback, Google will be killing the feature altogether. We think that’s a much better idea – mini cupcakes all round!
