When I first used Google Maps on my Nexus One, I liked it, but my major complaint was that it cached so little of the map data. I use my Nexus One only with wifi, having no data plan. Google Maps on my Dell Axim X51v seems to cache an unlimited amount of data -- I can download satellite imagery and road maps from all over the world, at least 100 megabytes, and it just keeps downloading it to my S.D.H.C. card. However, Google Maps on the Nexus One, a newer device, doesn't.
I installed Google Earth on my Nexus One, and nicely, it caches apparently unlimited data; I've downloaded well over 100M.B. to my MicroS.D. card. However, it neither shows road maps nor finds directions. I found this rather troublesome -- why don't they just integrate the two? In Windows and Linux, I can find directions and cache gigabytes of map data in Google Earth, and I think that Google Earth should be the same in Android.
Does anyone know of a good program that seamlessly downloads and caches unlimited amounts of satellite imagery and road maps, and finds and shows directions, or perhaps of a patch that makes Google Maps or Google Earth do these things?
Related
I have a Samsung JACK. However, I don't use the data plan. I just don't have the need for it.
It would be nice, from time to time, to have access to GPS mapping. I've discovered the GPSTest trick that eliminates the small data usage at GPS startup. But, I don't have any maps.
I've looked at Garming and TomTom's offerings. However, I don't need $100 for the whole country. I don't need half the country. I don't even need 1/50th of the country. What I really would be interested in is getting maps on a city by city (or even just one county) basis.
Does anybody sell maps of just a city?
Is there any way to download maps of just one city and store it locally?
Google Maps is a free service... is there any way of saving an area of map to the device to recall it later?
I use, prefer and recommend TrekBuddy. You just have to make the maps of your desired region(s) beforehand, but there are tools for that as well.
Does anyone know if there are any plans by HTC to bring out free maps for use on the WM platform for use in their phones?
When I was in the UK and had a virtually free GPRS connection as part of my plan, I used Google maps quite a lot, switching between whatever connection was available without any real problems, however I'm on the other side of the world now.
I find that my phone an HTC Touch HD has developed a big black hole and seems to have reverted back to the dark ages, in that even though it has a massive storage card installed, I can't easily save maps to it and use the built in GPS on the move, even though I can view Google maps via the WiFi here. Crazy!
Maybe my next phone will be a Nokia as it seems they are taking smartphones to a new level with their free Ovi map offering!
Can I politely ask you to rephrase the question?
Do you want a download-maps-as-you-go service like Bing / Google or a maps-saved-on-the-storage-card application like iGo? If it's either of those, what's wrong with either of those?
Go? Please enlighten me! Nothing seem to come up on a search of Google from here. Is it free? Is it easy to get working with the built in GPS - I've downloaded some maps of Vietnam that displayed fine (eventually) but the gps refused to play ball..
Google maps is wonderful IF you have a connection. Here in Vietnam, in the city with all the free WiFi around it's fine but as soon as I'm moving around, I'd rather not be paying for that data connection. And Google maps soon lets you know it hasn't got one!
So yes, stored on the card is the easiest and to me the best option. I'm not bothered about GPS navigation software, I just need a stored local map ( a storable google type map would be great) and the gps will tell me where I am on it! I can usually work it out under my own steam where I want to go to from there.
Thanks
Besides elevated views what does Google Earth offer over Google Maps? After waiting all this time for Froyo I can't really see what all the fuss is about? Can someone point out what I'm missing before I uninstall? Thanks
Earth
I didn't find it useful neither, its a app to show friends and play around but thats all imho
GPS Data
I only really use it for GPS data viewing that isn't hosted on a website such as KML data. Maps can now read KML but it has to be hosted on a webpage first so Google Earth is more convenient in that respect.
I played with Google Earth, and I use it all the time on the desktop, but I found it pretty useless on the phone..
If I need to load KML I'll do it in any one of my Geocaching programs. Anything I have that's KML I also have in GPX.
I have used my Galaxy S3 in areas with no data connection and I got "Lost data connection" and navigation would not work till I got a good signal again.
I just picked up a Galaxy Note 10.1 wiFi. It has a GPS so I tried the navigation over a 78 mile journey. The GPS worked exactly the same as the G3 one and never skipped a beat!
Now, since there is no cell service with my Note 10.1, can anyone who KNOWS, explain how it's acquiring the map data?
I am soooo blown away, and at the same time, very curious as to how this is being done.
Thanks Guys, hoping to see the light!!!
Aloha!
You can save Google map data for offline use. Under settings in Google Maps there's an option to make available offline. I've been downloading and using free USGS topo maps of National Forests for years, starting with my original GPS unit. If you hike or bike in these areas, these maps are life savers. Here's a link that gets you to a USGS page with links to a clickable map of the US that's used to pick the topo maps you want (the downloadable maps are free, paper maps are available for a reasonable price). http://nationalmap.gov/ustopo/ Right now, you can still sign up for a free beta of TerraGo's Mobile for Android app that can import USGS pdf topo maps. http://www.terragotech.com/download-software
The Google Maps app before sometime in 2020 or early 2021 used to recalculate without a problem if you missed a turn, if you had the maps of the area downloaded and the app set to "Wifi only".
But for well over a year now, Google Maps simply refuses to recalculate if you miss a turn any more, even if you've made sure to take all the steps I've mentioned.
If you miss a turn, you have to stop and manually enter the route again, or else have data turned on and then it will recalculate as it used to. So if you run out of data, as people on set data plans often do, then Google Maps becomes essentially useless as a reliable car sat nav even if you have the maps you need downloaded offline.
So I guess this is a Google decision to force their users to use more data, maybe they don't like people using their app economically in that way? Perhaps they resent people trying to save money and are trying to force you to spend more money on data?
Why are tech companies always determined to make things worse? They always needlessly remove functionality from their products that just make the users' lives more difficult.
I did read speculation online that this is just a "bug" and Google plan to fix it, but I don't believe that. The Google Maps app has behaved in this way for so long now that I can't see how it is anything other than a deliberate move on the part of Google. I don't understand why Google Maps still pretends to offer offline functionality when the reality is it does not any longer and hasn't for a long while now.
Report Google your issue.
What's the point? There are threads on their support forums where people have reported it, they clearly don't care as it's been this way for over 2 years now. I was just wondering if anyone had any ideas as to why Google have decided to do this, or what exactly they have changed in their app.
I guess a lot of people just dismiss my views on this as me being a cheapskate who should just pay for the data to use Google Maps, but what about when you go to a foreign country and have no roaming agreement? Just pay the rip off data fees per MB?
Maybe people think I should just buy a new sim card in each country, and just pay pay pay all the time rather than being able to download maps and navigate offline? Maybe that's the answer and I'm in the wrong?
triangulumair said:
The Google Maps app before sometime in 2020 or early 2021 used to recalculate without a problem if you missed a turn, if you had the maps of the area downloaded and the app set to "Wifi only".
But for well over a year now, Google Maps simply refuses to recalculate if you miss a turn any more, even if you've made sure to take all the steps I've mentioned.
If you miss a turn, you have to stop and manually enter the route again, or else have data turned on and then it will recalculate as it used to. So if you run out of data, as people on set data plans often do, then Google Maps becomes essentially useless as a reliable car sat nav even if you have the maps you need downloaded offline.
So I guess this is a Google decision to force their users to use more data, maybe they don't like people using their app economically in that way? Perhaps they resent people trying to save money and are trying to force you to spend more money on data?
Why are tech companies always determined to make things worse? They always needlessly remove functionality from their products that just make the users' lives more difficult.
I did read speculation online that this is just a "bug" and Google plan to fix it, but I don't believe that. The Google Maps app has behaved in this way for so long now that I can't see how it is anything other than a deliberate move on the part of Google. I don't understand why Google Maps still pretends to offer offline functionality when the reality is it does not any longer and hasn't for a long while now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you tried clearing cache and data for Google Maps?
Maybe Google made changes to Google Maps to improve accuracy, changes that require data to be enabled to more accurately pinpoint your actual location while navigating.
triangulumair said:
What's the point? There are threads on their support forums where people have reported it, they clearly don't care as it's been this way for over 2 years now. I was just wondering if anyone had any ideas as to why Google have decided to do this, or what exactly they have changed in their app.
I guess a lot of people just dismiss my views on this as me being a cheapskate who should just pay for the data to use Google Maps, but what about when you go to a foreign country and have no roaming agreement? Just pay the rip off data fees per MB?
Maybe people think I should just buy a new sim card in each country, and just pay pay pay all the time rather than being able to download maps and navigate offline? Maybe that's the answer and I'm in the wrong?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm using OsmAnd+ offline with OpenStreetMap, and I'm very satisfied. Actually, I don't use anything by Google, no Google Play Services by microG.
OsmAnd~ | F-Droid - Free and Open Source Android App Repository
Global Mobile Map Viewing & Navigation for Offline and Online OSM Maps
f-droid.org