Apple: Don't Buy Waze, It's Dangerous and Reckless

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Back in early October, I wrote an article -- The Apple 'MappleGate' Tragedy Nobody Wants to Talk About -- that fell through the cracks. This happens from time to time. Usually, I don't follow up. You know, you're only as good as your last at-bat.

Anyhow, a few months later, with MappleGate out of the headlines and the private startup navigation app Waze a better-known entity, it's probably worth another crack. Plus, I think I raise an important issue. In fact, I would feel slightly guilty, after my experience with Waze, if I didn't raise red flags.

Apple (AAPL) is apparently not going to buy Waze after all. Just the other day, standard media fare went down. Somebody reported the Apple/Waze rumor and everybody else rushed to file the same story. Turns out, at least according to TechCrunch, that everybody, including TechCrunch, jumped the gun.

I'm relieved.

For a whole host of reasons, there's no good reason for Apple to buy Waze. Most importantly, why would Apple want to take on such a dangerous and reckless application at best, a lawsuit waiting to happen at worst?

I wrote about Waze in October after using it several times, most notably on a 90-minute journey between Universal City and Santa Monica in Southern California. After that experience I will never use Waze again, particularly because I don't want to die or seriously injure myself or somebody else.

Instead, I have used Apple Maps, navigation provided by Siri, to get around familiar surroundings and on a weekend trip to Phoenix. It performs reasonably well -- though not perfect -- but, and here's the key, I do not have to take my eyes off of the road. In fact, I load directions before I start the car, push a button and never look at my iPhone again. Nor does Siri entice me to peek.