Apple's been taking some hard punches lately. Developers fumed over the changes to the App Store. Then, there's Apple's new Maps app that ousted Google Maps from iOS 6. Users have been feeling a little lost in space with the new maps, forcing CEO Tim Cook to apologize in a public letter. But the whole debacle over the maps is a good reminder that there's a level of risk involved in any product.
Did Apple make a wrong turn? Maybe, but only time will tell if they did. Products, especially something as broad and expansive as a map, can occasionally be a little rough out the door. Remember how bumpy Google Maps was when it first came out?
Certainly, you can user test to mitigate as many issues before a release, or do a private release to ferret out as many problems as you can. And prototyping can get you to discover errors in your thinking. However, there are going to be times when you won't really know for sure until you release a product out in the wild. There are always issues that as much as you try, you can't foresee.
When push comes to shove, sometimes you just have to put your product out there and see what happens. The key thing to remember is if it doesn't go as well as expected you shouldn't pull back and do nothing. Iterate — work to make it better.