Amsterdam

Update: A reader just sent the images above that show Apple’s maps are identical to Microsoft’s for certain locations.

Evidence surfaced yesterday that showed Apple was crediting TomTom, in addition to OpenStreetMap, for at least some of the data used in its new in-house Maps app. Today, a report from TechPP (via TheNextWeb) pointed to proof that Apple’s Maps data appears to come from Microsoft too:

our friend, Cody Cooper, a New Zealand based developer, found something more interesting. While playing with Apple Maps on iOS 6 beta, Cody found that some of the Maps images had Microsoft attribution. Check out the image below showing the response headers with attributions to Microsoft Corp 2012. Click on the image for a better view.

We have not been able to confirm the evidence, so we are marking this as unconfirmed for now. Apple’s full list of acknowledgments for its Maps app can be viewed here, while the full-sized image of the evidence is below:

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Having successfully reset the center of Amsterdam with the beautiful Hirsch store—the company’s first in the Netherlands, while gearing to launch a landmark outlet in London’s world-famous Harrods department store by mid-March (quite possibly coinciding with iPad 3 availability), Apple is ready to open new retail outlets in the United States and overseas. Per the latest retail chatter, Apple now plans to build four new stores, including an outlet in Houston’s Highland Village Shopping center at Westheimer and Drexel, and a spectacular store at the old Saks space in downtown Portland, Ore.

A retail application from an unnamed company that Portland is reviewing describes a block-long glass storefront with a 10-foot deep plaza in front in Saks Fifth Avenue at the Pioneer Place shopping mall.

Likely replacing the existing Apple store building’s basement, OregonLive.com reports the development plan calls for a “single story building and outdoor plaza area… fully glazed with clear glass.” The report also mentioned “bead blasted, matte finish stainless steel panels,” another tell-tale sign of an Apple store.

A Google Maps view on the right, courtesy of ifoAppleStore, outlines the proposed area for the store in yellow. Plaza steps are planned and the entire store is slated at 165 feet wide with 22 glass panels. Downloadable PDFs offer a glimpse into the project description and drawings and the ground-floor plan. The design review of the proposed store is due March 15 at 1:30 p.m.

More information on other upcoming outlets, including Italy’s “most important store,” are after the break.

Black curtains hiding the glass front of Apple’s upcoming store in Houston’s Highland Village Shopping center at Westheimer and Drexel. Image credit: Chron.com

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Here is one more reason to visit Amsterdam—the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands: Apple is busy putting the finishing touches on a new retail store. According to Dutch-language website iPhoneclub.nl, the rumored Leidseplein store is now a reality as the company raised huge orange storefront stickers adorned with three Apple logos – a subtle hint at the three crosses on top of each other from the Coat of Arms of Amsterdam. The customary stickers read:

Apple Store, Amsterdam. Opening soon.

While employees speculate the store could open this coming Saturday, Feb. 18, that may not be feasible due to scaffoldings and plastic sheets inside (additional snaps at the source link). Moreover, a recent job ad in the Metro newspaper indicates Apple has only recently begun hiring store staff, so Feb. 18 could be the date when employee training starts (as the website noted itself, employees have a mandatory day off on Saturday)…

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