# offline maps on iphone



## i-rui (Sep 13, 2006)

so i've been trying to get offline maps set up on my iphone, but i've been disappointed in the results so far.

i've been trying to get it running in xGPS (installed thru Cydia on my jailbroken iphone 2G). First off DLing the maps is a HUGE pain, and then even worse, the search function is absolutely useless.... which kind of defeats the purpose of having maps if you can't easily find the place you need a map to!

Apparently offline maps seemed like a better solution, but it seems 2.2 broke it by using a different tile scheme. And the programs used to DL and convert the tiles seem to be windows only :

Disable EDGE/3G data on iPhone » Offline Google Maps

Am i missing a better solution? Does anyone know of something better?


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

I'm not sure if this is quite the same thing as what you're talking about, but I do this all the time -- on my 2G (original) iPhone!

1. Open Google Maps while you have your wifi active.
2. Set up directions/map for where you want to go.
3. Put iPhone to sleep with Google Maps as the active app.

Now, in my car, I can awaken the iPhone and there's the map, which I can switch to the "directions list" and back again as needed. Obviously I can't look up new data, but my map works fine.

Indeed, I used this exact method to drive from Florida to Vancouver, taking mostly roads I had never been on before and visiting mostly destinations I had not been to previously. Each morning before I left the hotel, I loaded up the map to where I was going next. Worked flawlessly.


----------



## i-rui (Sep 13, 2006)

i was really hoping to find something i could use to search offline.

playing around with xGPS i found that it can search ONLINE (although not as good as google maps). Perhaps what i'm asking for isn't possible, in that the program NEEDS to be online?

But i was hoping it could work just like a GPS (without the GPS)


----------



## GratuitousApplesauce (Jan 29, 2004)

chas_m said:


> I'm not sure if this is quite the same thing as what you're talking about, but I do this all the time -- on my 2G (original) iPhone!
> 
> 1. Open Google Maps while you have your wifi active.
> 2. Set up directions/map for where you want to go.
> ...


A little trick I discovered when using my Touch to access the Vancouver Translink Bus schedule app, which only works while connected to the net:

1. Look it up when you have wifi, as Chas suggests
2. Take a screenshot to capture whatever is on the screen, bus sched, map etc.
3. Access screenshot later in "Saved Photos".

I discovered the screenshot feature by accident one day when I hit both the Home button and the sleep button at the same time. I heard the familiar OSX camera shutter sound but didn't know what happened. Later I discovered the screenshot in my "Saved Photos" with the time at the top and put 2 + 2 together.


----------



## i-rui (Sep 13, 2006)

thanks for the tip, but i'm really hoping for a way to do a location search off line since i don't have a data plan with my iphone. It's my hope to be able to look up a address offline in my car. i already hav all the maps DL'd to the iphone thru xGPS....now i just have to find a way to search thru the maps offline


----------



## BReligion (Jun 21, 2006)

I know this is not the answer you want to hear, but stop fighting and wasting your time with trying to fight with mapping apps and different tricks (However both suggestions do work, and are great suggestions for offline map viewing!) 

If you are spending a lot of time in the car, not near wifi and needing to do seaarches... do yourself a favour and buy a GPS for the car. I picked up a Garmin c330 (entry level GPS) for less than $100 (its up at $120, but it does fluctuate in price Garmin c330 @ tigerdirect.ca and its GREAT!!

I have run the gammit with GPS enabled devices (MS Streets and Trips on my macbook with GPS Receiver, Pocket Streets on an IPAQ, Maps and GPS on Blackberry, Telus Navigator Service on Blackberry, gently played with Maps and storing offline on Iphone), and i tell you i only wish i had gone the route of the GPS first.

Fully loaded points of interest & searches (which is what you are after i think), not as bulky and awkward to try to use in the car as the laptop, bigger screen as compared to BB & iPhone, voice navigation, also uses true GPS not Cell tower triangulation so if you aren't in cell range and get lost, easy to re-route yourself (again, not in the scope of what you are looking for, just giving a comparison to the other devices i have used)... 

I know you said you wanted to do like a GPS but without a GPS, and by no means is the c330 a perfect device/solution, i just thought i would share my thoughts.

BReligion


----------



## Script Kiddie (Jan 30, 2003)

Well for once something that tons of other phones can do that the iPhone can't do 

Main Page - TrekBuddy


----------



## [email protected] (Sep 24, 2007)

Script Kiddie said:


> Well for once something that tons of other phones can do that the iPhone can't do
> 
> Main Page - TrekBuddy


Besides MMS and copy and paste


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

i-rui said:


> i was really hoping to find something i could use to search offline.
> 
> playing around with xGPS i found that it can search ONLINE (although not as good as google maps). Perhaps what i'm asking for isn't possible, in that the program NEEDS to be online?
> 
> But i was hoping it could work just like a GPS (without the GPS)


"I need to breathe -- but without air."

Sorry, I'm not understanding. If you want a GPS program to update, it has to connect to SOMETHING. A satellite or the internet. It has to get data from SOMEWHERE.

So no, you cannot search or update without a connection. If you have an iPhone 3G, this connection should be available to you most if not all of the time, but if you have an older iPhone (or lack access to 3G/Wifi/EDGE), you'll have to load the map PRIOR to losing your internet access and then stick with it.


----------



## rgray (Feb 15, 2005)

[email protected] said:


> Besides MMS and copy and paste


And _global search_..............


----------



## Script Kiddie (Jan 30, 2003)

chas_m said:


> "I need to breathe -- but without air."
> 
> Sorry, I'm not understanding. If you want a GPS program to update, it has to connect to SOMETHING. A satellite or the internet. It has to get data from SOMEWHERE.
> 
> So no, you cannot search or update without a connection. If you have an iPhone 3G, this connection should be available to you most if not all of the time, but if you have an older iPhone (or lack access to 3G/Wifi/EDGE), you'll have to load the map PRIOR to losing your internet access and then stick with it.


Chas,
GPS data comes from satellites. Map data comes from the cellular stations. If you have preloaded maps, and can receive a GPS signal (anywhere on earth as long as you're out in the open) and find your spot on the _preloaded_ map without cellular coverage.


----------



## i-rui (Sep 13, 2006)

yes, the whole point of the app is that it saves the map data to the iphone, so you can access it offline.

anyways, they're going to release a new version, so hopefully this one will be able to search offline:

xGPS - GPS for iPhone / iPod touch


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

My apologies. I didn't understand the difference between GPS as used by Google Maps (et al) on the iPhone 3G and xGPS on the iPhone.


----------



## imageinnovation (Jun 10, 2009)

chas_m said:


> I'm not sure if this is quite the same thing as what you're talking about, but I do this all the time -- on my 2G (original) iPhone!
> 
> 1. Open Google Maps while you have your wifi active.
> 2. Set up directions/map for where you want to go.
> ...



This is something I'd like to do too. I presume the technique works on the Touch as well? And can you zoom in and out on the map if you're offline?


----------



## harrisjr (Aug 29, 2007)

There's an app on the appstore that will do this for you natively. It's called OFFMAPS. When I bought it, it was only 1.99. Might have gone up in price since then but is still cheap.

Hope that helps.


----------



## Ottawaman (Jan 16, 2005)

Using the Chasm method right now in Gatineau


----------



## imageinnovation (Jun 10, 2009)

Ottawaman said:


> Using the Chasm method right now in Gatineau


Can you zoom in and out on the maps?


----------



## JustAMacUser (Oct 21, 2007)

imageinnovation said:


> Can you zoom in and out on the maps?


Possibly. But the cache for the Maps app is limited, so it will only hold so much information. You would have to zoom in while you have a network connection, then zoom out again to get the whole map. But you wouldn't be able to do this on the fly and likely would not be able to cache the entire trip zoomed in.

I also used Chas' method while in Quebec once. It worked until we got stuck in an area of all one-way streets and couldn't stay on the map area.


----------



## imageinnovation (Jun 10, 2009)

JustAMacUser said:


> Possibly. But the cache for the Maps app is limited, so it will only hold so much information. You would have to zoom in while you have a network connection, then zoom out again to get the whole map. But you wouldn't be able to do this on the fly and likely would not be able to cache the entire trip zoomed in.
> 
> I also used Chas' method while in Quebec once. It worked until we got stuck in an area of all one-way streets and couldn't stay on the map area.


I'm still a little confused about how this would work. If you save screenshots of the map, does that have anything to do with the maps caches? The screenshots are jpg images, right? Couldn't you call them up and zoom them in and out? Or would they just get pixelated by doing that?


----------



## JustAMacUser (Oct 21, 2007)

imageinnovation said:


> I'm still a little confused about how this would work. If you save screenshots of the map, does that have anything to do with the maps caches? The screenshots are jpg images, right? Couldn't you call them up and zoom them in and out? Or would they just get pixelated by doing that?


Yes, you could save screenshots and view them in the Photos app. It's a different method than what Chas pointed out, but it would work.


----------



## imageinnovation (Jun 10, 2009)

JustAMacUser said:


> Yes, you could save screenshots and view them in the Photos app. It's a different method than what Chas pointed out, but it would work.


I'm getting the Touch tomorrow, so I'll give it a try. 

I re-read Chas's description of what he did. I can see how it's different from what I was thinking, but I'm curious whether he has to keep the map on the screen during the trip or lose it. 

It seems to me that if the map isn't actually saved to the Touch, you couldn't get it back if you switched to some other app in the meantime. That would limit the usefulness of the Touch on the trip.


----------



## GratuitousApplesauce (Jan 29, 2004)

imageinnovation said:


> I'm still a little confused about how this would work. If you save screenshots of the map, does that have anything to do with the maps caches? The screenshots are jpg images, right? Couldn't you call them up and zoom them in and out? Or would they just get pixelated by doing that?


The screenshots are just jpegs. If you wanted to zoom in and out you would be limited by the resolution of the image.

I've used this method with my Touch. I took screenshots of different views at different zoom levels leading to my destination. Then I was able to view them if I got confused about where I was going. But after all that map-studyin', I actually didn't need to consult them later, but it was good to know they were there in case I got lost.

This Offmaps app that harrisjr mentioned looks interesting:



> ➔ Offline maps
> 
> In offline mode you can only view maps of areas that you have previously seen or preloaded. You can view your current location and bookmarks, but can't use the search as this requires the large CloudMade database that is only available online. You can even add local bookmarks by tapping the map at any location.
> 
> ...


----------



## imageinnovation (Jun 10, 2009)

GratuitousApplesauce said:


> The screenshots are just jpegs. If you wanted to zoom in and out you would be limited by the resolution of the image.
> 
> I've used this method with my Touch. I took screenshots of different views at different zoom levels leading to my destination. Then I was able to view them if I got confused about where I was going. But after all that map-studyin', I actually didn't need to consult them later, but it was good to know they were there in case I got lost.
> 
> This Offmaps app that harrisjr mentioned looks interesting:


Re: map-studying -- I do this now by printing my Google maps on paper. Like you, after I go through the process, I know the route pretty well and often don't need to look at the maps. If I can replicate this process with the Touch, I'll be happy. But I'm actually thinking about getting a GPS for the car because I'd like voice directions. 

re: offmaps app. I agree it looks interesting but the reviews weren't entirely glowing. I think it's quite new, though, so there may be improvements coming along.


----------



## chas_m (Dec 2, 2007)

i-rui said:


> i was really hoping to find something i could use to search offline.
> 
> playing around with xGPS i found that it can search ONLINE (although not as good as google maps). Perhaps what i'm asking for isn't possible, in that the program NEEDS to be online?
> 
> But i was hoping it could work just like a GPS (without the GPS)


The problem with this idea is that the amount of data that would need to be stored on the iPhone would be simply ENORMOUS. Imagine trying to put every city and street in North America (or just Canada!) on an iPhone. You'd lose at a minimum 4GB of space just for this one app, something I'm sure Apple (and common sense) would never allow.

For GPS to work, it must have some kind of data connection so it can determine where you are and download only the information you need at that time.


----------



## i-rui (Sep 13, 2006)

i have no problem what-so-ever losing a couple of gigs to maps. i imagine many of the new map & GPS apps will eat up that much space.


----------



## defender (Aug 24, 2009)

*Wikimap - Save OSM Maps for Offline Navigation*

Check out the full version of Wikimap which allows users to save open street maps (OSM) for offline map navigation and browsing.

Wikimap - wiki.Alumni.NET


----------

