
Google launches offline maps - toby
https://googleblog.blogspot.com/2015/11/navigate-and-search-real-world-online.html
======
Someone1234
This is amazing. Now things like Garman have no real purpose (offline maps was
their niche as Google Map's version of the same was terrible).

Now who do I need to bribe at Google to get Google Maps to support Mirrorlink
so it works with a quarter of a million vehicles? And to give Google Now a
fake telephone number?

Google would prefer vehicles implement Android Auto. I'd prefer that too. The
reality on the ground is that about a dozen vehicles in the 2016 model year
support Android Auto, while four times that support Mirrorlink (a Android
Auto/Car Play competitor). That's a lot of vehicles who for their ten-twenty
year lifespan won't have Google Maps without MirrorLink app support. So
they're stuck using wonderful Android apps like "BringGo" and "Sygic" that are
MirrorLink compatible.

As to the Google Now fake phone number issue. Microsoft's Cortana does this,
it rocks. A lot of vehicles totally botch Bluetooth. On a $20 Bluetooth
Headset you can push and hold the call button and it opens up a audio stream
to your smartphone, you say "OK Google" and Google Now works. Unfortunately
many vehicles lack this very simple functionality. They outright refuse to
open up a blank audio stream over Bluetooth, instead they want a specific
phone number to call (that is stored on the vehicle's contact list). With no
telephone contact in the directory the vehicle won't even pretend to start a
call. Once you ask your vehicle to call someone, it opens up the Android
dialer app and "OK Google" does not function (since you're now in a voice
call). Cortana's fake number solves this outright, you "call" Cortana, she
answers and you conduct your query. Your vehicle cannot know it isn't a real
voice call, it is amazing.

PS - No, Tasker does not solve the bluetooth thing. You can intercept the call
and start Google Now, but as soon as it hangs up the call the bluetooth cuts
out.

~~~
justinator
> Now things like Garman have no real purpose (offline maps > was their niche
> as Google Map's version of the same was terrible).

I see you've never used a GPS in the back country for days at a time.

Things that are still wonderful about my eTrex 20 [0] is that it's cheap, it
takes AA batteries, those AA's can last for 16+ hours continually, and it's
not my phone. (phones are great, but I need it to operate as a phone, when I
do need it).

And yes, I know your phone can do may wonderful things, and I am as grateful
for that as you are, but of the few things they still are not getting right
is: use in incremental weather. Like: winter outside, in a snowstorm, on a
mountain. Or, being dropped onto things, like rocks. They seem to be allergic
to those.

[0] [http://sites.garmin.com/en-US/etrex/](http://sites.garmin.com/en-
US/etrex/)

~~~
whyenot
The best thing about the eTrex is that it has a much more accurate GPS than in
a phone, at least an iPhone.

The worst things about the eTrex are it's utter crap screen, how bulky it is,
how expensive it is (they start at $250), the fact you have to spend a
significant amount of additional money on maps and map updates, the added bulk
due to the fact it uses AA batteries, and the poor battery life (I know this
contradicts your experience, but that is MY experience using one 12 hours a
day mapping plants).

I think for many people buying something like the Gaia GPS app and a
waterproof case for their phone will be a much less expensive and more
flexible option. If you are worried about running down the battery, buy a
rechargeable lithium ion battery with a usb jack and take along your charging
cable. If you need more accuracy, get a GPS puck for your phone. Garmin sells
one.

~~~
nether
I just sold my Garmin 62s. iPhone 6s in low power mode has a longer battery
life, and Gaia has always been superior to Garmin software.

A better purchase today might just be a Delorme Inreach and their cheapest
subscription. It gives 2-way communication and has an emergency beacon
function.

------
Urgo
It's great they brought this back, but this is far from a new feature, just
one that was gone for a few years. Previous to the redesign of the google maps
app this feature did fully exist with navigation and all as I used it myself
when visiting Canada. Anyway glad to see it back but how quick the Internet
forgets.. this isn't new, they just fixed the broken feature, heh.

~~~
modeless
You are mistaken. What existed before (and the redesign did not remove) was
the ability to view cached data offline. You could specify a region to cache,
then zoom and pan around that area without a data connection. It would also
automatically download your route when you started navigation, and if you
subsequently lost your data connection there was a limited offline ability to
give directions back to the cached route.

What is new, and never existed before in any version of the app, is the
ability to search and start navigation completely offline.

~~~
mjcohen
Absolutely wrong. Back in version 6, there was a "My Maps" feature which
allowed you to save a region and use that saved region to navigate.

~~~
modeless
"My Maps" was and still is the name of a feature which allows you to add your
own places, lines, etc. on top of the base Google map. It has never allowed
you to search the base map or start turn-by-turn navigation offline.

~~~
drited
As long as you had internet connection at the start of your journey it worked
for navigation, even if you dropped offline during your trip. Therefore
downloading maps was useful at the time because if you didn't do this, you
could be driving blind for a while in areas where there was no internet
connection. You could only download small sections of the map at 1 time for
offline use (e.g. an area just bigger than Manhattan). Still it was a total
PITA given that most other navigation apps at the time allowed you to download
maps and start navigation even if you were offline. Of course, if you did that
all the time Google wouldn't be able to collect data on you to support its
business model, which is probably why they've taken so many years to get
around to implementing this.

------
suprgeek
HERE Maps - Has all of the Offline capabilities and is available Multi-
Platform. In addition it has Speed limits and warnings, all for free on
Android.

The one reason to use the Google Maps app is the updated Traffic info and
slightly nicer turn-by-turn (mentions specific lanes, etc) and slightly more
updated maps.

~~~
spacehunt
Let me know when it covers Japan.

~~~
mempko
*disclaimer: I used to work for HERE. I don't anymore. These opinions are my own.

They covered much more of the world than google maps. I always didn't
understand why Japan didn't make the cut, I didn't have any insight into that.

fyi, HERE also has better indoor map coverage last time I checked, if you care
for that sort of thing.

~~~
jmspring
Usually I use HERE maps when traveling. I usually use CityMaps2Go as a backup.
It was my primary offline map when in Japan earlier this year.

It was certainly odd that it was missing.

~~~
jaakl
The HERE needs definitely backup. I have country maps downloaded there for
travel, and phone is always offline, but often I see white map for the
downloaded area. Initially it is always white. Sometimes it helps if you get
online for a moment, but even then later on I have still got white map.
Similar issues with both Android and iOS versions. Unreliable stuff

------
sehugg
I've had good luck with OSM apps like MAPS.ME, and it lets you download entire
states or countries if you wish:
[http://maps.me/en/home](http://maps.me/en/home)

You're probably not going to get the same detailed place/business data, but
there are some things where it is more useful (finding public restrooms in
Europe, for instance)

~~~
frik
MAPS.ME is the best free OpenStreetMaps apps I found this summer. One can
download countries or even a few continents of map data and stay offline with
GPS-only. Older OSM map apps got crippled or were not updated for recent OS
versions The quality of the OSM map data varies more than Google Maps, but
often OSM is more detailed.

~~~
trystero
OsmAnd has more features but the UX is still a bit complicated.

------
jakub_g
Not sure if everyone on HN is aware of it, but HERE Maps has been supporting
offline maps for a while, for Windows, Android and iOS devices. You just first
download a package over WiFi to your phone / SD card (one package per country,
or for big countries, one package per region) and you can access the maps
offline.

That's super useful when traveling within Europe for instance.

The main reason I sometimes use Google Maps is that it has better traffic
coverage (shows also minor roads while HERE only major ones).

~~~
Alex3917
The Navigon GPS app is also offline. It's really a key feature, not only for
driving but also for any activity where you're in the woods. It saves me from
getting completely lost several times a year.

~~~
mjcohen
Yep. Navigon and Co-Pilot are two offline maps I have used. Each has pros and
cons, but they both work fine without a data connection.

------
PetrolMan
Didn't this feature already exist and then disappear? I seem to remember being
able to select a roughly 20 mile square area to download to my phone but the
data and the feature disappeared after either an Android update or a Maps
update.

~~~
advisedwang
That has existed for a while and never went away (you can access it by
clicking on the search bar and scrolling down). What is being announced now is
that offline maps can be used for routing/navigation and business info.

~~~
dogma1138
It always downloaded and cached the area around your location and route. What
new here is that you can control it and it also sounds to be persistent, it
also will probably download POI and local businesses info as you've mentioned
and allow you to use navigation while offline.

This is quite good for my android phone because it seems to try to connect to
every metro wifi out there and doesn't fall back gracefully and quickly enough
for it to be seamless. The iPhone has a better UX when it comes to this but
still would be quite good especially when I go to out of the city and get edge
or poor 3G connection, it also will work great when roaming and I won't have
to worry about closing the navigation app or pressing anything that will
trigger a new search when I'm out of the hotel and don't have wifi.

------
greggman
I'm really curious why Google maps seems so .... neglected?

Maybe all these ideas have been considered but rejected for one reason or
another.

* Why can I not annotate the map with my own comments? I can mark a place but I can't label it or put any notes. Seems like for google it could a great source for big data (opt in). Would also seem like a possible lock in feature as in an incentive not to switch to another map system since you probably couldn't easily import your notes)

* Why does search on maps suck so bad? I search for things and it gives me massively irrelevant answers halfway around the world even though it knows where I am. Why is actually searching so hard? Quite often I type something in, I want to "search" as in (show me markers on the map that match this query) but no search option appears, only a list of results which is not useful to me. I want to see them on the map. I don't know where 123 brown street is vs 567 red street but I would know if it would show me all of them on the map. That option is only available sometimes, not always. No idea why.

* Why haven't they started selling ads on the maps? Or at least letting businesses register more info. I'd personally like to see logos/signs (small) instead of just generic markers. I'd also like to be to search for items and have it tell me where I can get them. Not just generic items but specific items. eg. not where can I buy appliances but where I can I buy/see the LG LSXS26466S

* Why are the maps still so bad in so many parts of the world? Google maps does not know how to get from downtown Paris to Paris Disneyland by public transport. Google maps does not have public transportation info in Istanbul THE LARGEST CITY IN EUROPE!

~~~
jpatokal
1) You can, it's called My Maps:
[http://mymaps.google.com](http://mymaps.google.com)

2) Search is hard, let's go shopping!

3) They have: [https://support.google.com/adwords/answer/3246303?hl=en-
AU](https://support.google.com/adwords/answer/3246303?hl=en-AU)

4) Public transport info generally relies on there being a competent transit
authority that can provide a solid GTFS feed. You'd be surprised how hard even
big, 1st-world cities can find this (here's looking at you, Melbourne).

~~~
TeMPOraL
> _4) Public transport info generally relies on there being a competent
> transit authority that can provide a solid GTFS feed. You 'd be surprised
> how hard even big, 1st-world cities can find this (here's looking at you,
> Melbourne)._

Sometimes the authorities get into exclusive deals with other companies. Which
is infuriating, because while I understand competition, et al., it's _Google
Maps_ (and by extension Google Now) we're talking about! I don't want to use
that stupid startup that provides public transit navigation in my city. I want
Google Now which is properly integrated with everything else on my phone.

------
chrissnell
I'm particularly eager to see offline hi-res satellite imagery become
available on a mobile device. I lead extended off-road desert driving trips
[1] as a hobby and navigation is the biggest challenge. I strive to avoid
commonly used roads and trails and seek out old, disused mining roads and
cattle paths whenever possible. I currently use offline USGS topo maps [2]
which is a big help but satellite imagery is far better for evaluating the
potential driveability of a route.

Please, Google--anybody--let us use or buy offline satellite imagery!

[1]
[https://www.flickr.com/photos/defender90/sets/72157654387670...](https://www.flickr.com/photos/defender90/sets/72157654387670633)

[2] [http://topomapsapp.com/](http://topomapsapp.com/)

~~~
maxerickson
You can DIY it. There is an ecosystem of tools that can handle map tiles
shoved into a sqlite database:

[http://mobac.sourceforge.net/](http://mobac.sourceforge.net/)

So you just need to pick some of them and mess around getting it working. In
the US, you can get reasonable imagery from the USGS:

[http://raster.nationalmap.gov/arcgis/rest/services/Orthoimag...](http://raster.nationalmap.gov/arcgis/rest/services/Orthoimagery/USGS_EROS_Ortho/ImageServer)

------
SwellJoe
I traveled full-time in a motorhome for about four years, and I literally
can't count the number of times I have furiously shouted "Goddammit, Google,
cache your shit!" at my phone. I don't frequently get angry at inanimate
objects (or faceless corporations), but this is a uniquely infuriating
problem.

I had other map and navigation apps, including quite pricey ones. And, I had a
dedicated Garmin GPS. All could navigat and provide maps without a network
connections. But, they all suck in other ways. Google Maps is clearly superior
in every regard _except_ that it will leave you on your own when you get off
the grid, which is a pretty big deal...made more frustrating because it's
difficult to guess _when_ it's going to fail completely and make driving
really stressful for a little while.

They allegedly added caching of routes a few years back, but it never worked
very well. Any change, addition of another destination along the route,
changing zoom level, searching for gas and then trying to go back to your
original route, would all cause it to lose the cached information. It was
pretty much worthless because it would invalidate the cache at the drop of a
hat.

I'm hitting the road again, in a travel trailer, and I gave away my GPS
because I have less space for extraneous things. I also assumed that things
are better on the Android app GPS front (when I started traveling back then, I
was using a Google dev phone, the first one based on the G1...so, all things
Android have improved a little bit).

------
mjcohen
Gee, now Google Maps is almost as good as it was at version 6, two or three
years ago.

If they only add "Save as a contact", as version 6 does, I could get rid of my
never-to-be-upgraded original Nexus.

This is on of the few changes to Maps that seem to be an improvement over the
previous version.

------
jmharvey
> You can download an area by searching for a city, county or country

I'm curious what states or countries actually work with this feature. The
first thing I did was type in "United States." Too big. Eventually I had to
zoom into an area half the size of the SF peninsula before I could download
anything. It's better than nothing, but still not as good offline as the
Garmin I had a decade ago. I guess this data has lots of stuff that my Garmin
didn't, like business hours, but I care a lot more about navigation than about
the rich maps data Google wants to deliver me.

------
dharma1
Is the offline functionality exposed in the Android Google Maps APIs yet, for
3rd party apps?

~~~
r0m4n0
I was wondering the same. This could potentially allow for circumvention of
their usage limits though.

------
legohead
Tried downloading LA -- "Area too large, zoom in"

You can download the whole USA map with the "HERE" app...

~~~
Kequc
Google can direct me to the front door of an apartment in a dense city. As
well as provide me with opening hours of businesses and detailed transit
information. How big is the download, to grab "The whole USA"?

~~~
kuschku
HERE has that, too. Except that business hours aren’t offline available.
That’s why even the small German states are about a Gigabyte.

------
JustSomeNobody
This implementation is rather lacking. Its only offline when a data connection
isn't present. When data returns it automatically goes back online.

There's a very small limit to what one can download as well.

~~~
bduerst
It's calculating navigation routes, right? Wouldn't you want to use the most
recent data for that?

~~~
mjcohen
No. map data does not change much. Traffic does, but not the map data.

~~~
bduerst
Right but they've always cached map data. The offline mode also does
navigation now.

------
rsync
Can I thread hijack and ask what in the world happened to plain old satellite
view in google maps ?

As in, go to the maps.google.com website, and the little icon in the corner to
see things in a satellite view doesn't exist anymore ... there is only a
choice for google earth and streetviews and blah blah blah things I never
used.

Although on an old mac running snow leopard, satellite view option _is_ still
there.

What is going on ? Why would I not want the option of satellite view ? It
seems like I would...

~~~
efuquen
I believe the earth view is suppose to be the what was the old satellite view,
just now by default having 3D rendering. Some people like it, some people
don't If you're annoyed by the 3D rendering you can turn it off. Go to the
same menu after selecting the Earth view and you should now see a '3D on'
label. Click it and the 3D stuff will turn off and you'll get normal looking
satellite images again.

------
brokentone
I was hoping that the headline meant you could order prints.

~~~
awhitty
Doesn't look like it, but you can build and export your own prints at high
resolution through Mapbox Studio Classic [1], and you can order nice prints
for the U.S. from the USGS [2].

[1]: [https://www.mapbox.com/mapbox-studio-
classic/](https://www.mapbox.com/mapbox-studio-classic/)

[2]:
[http://store.usgs.gov/b2c_usgs/b2c/display/(xcm=r3standardpi...](http://store.usgs.gov/b2c_usgs/b2c/display/\(xcm=r3standardpitrex_prd&layout=6_1_61_50_2&uiarea=2&ctype=catalogEntry&carea=0000000009\)/.do)

------
sandGorgon
I'm surprised Nokia Here Maps [1] hasnt got a mention here. I did a multiple
day roadtrip covering yosemite and death valley and Nokia Here Maps was the
only thing that worked and it worked brilliantly.

[1]
[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.here.app.m...](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.here.app.maps&hl=en)

------
sjbase
This has been around for a couple of years unofficially. If you typed "ok
maps" into the search bar in maps, it would offline the area currently
onscreen.

[http://www.wired.com/2014/02/offline-google-
maps/](http://www.wired.com/2014/02/offline-google-maps/)

~~~
ascorbic
This just let you view the map. The change is that you can now search and
navigate offline.

------
pbhjpbhj
>we’re gradually rolling out the first set of these improvements with the
latest version of Google Maps on Android //

Wouldn't it be nice if there was a version number so one could tell if it was
worth updating yet. This is a big plus for me, the old option to cache a
region of maps was very useful and this seems the moreso.

~~~
gniv
The version that has the new offline functionality is 9.17

~~~
pbhjpbhj
Thanks - for anyone else looking your current version is in the Help > "..."
menu (amongst other places).

------
tzier
Interesting to watch tech innovation be stifled by telecom inefficiencies.
Great move by Google to adapt to that reality.

~~~
Nagyman
It's really something all businesses building apps (native or otherwise)
should be concerned with. Until we have one global network provider (haha), I
don't see them cooperating with each other any time soon in any way that
doesn't line their pockets. There are some EU roaming laws progressing in that
direction, but I don't expect that for North Americans in the near future.

Latest example I had while I was travelling - the AirBnb "app" couldn't show
me my accommodation details without internet access. Really, what's the point
of the app then if you can't cache the data locally?

Browser caches should also be less aggressive about getting fresh data too.
Caching is hard, but not everybody stays in one place with access to the
internet until later. Do I have to continue printing on paper? Most web apps
and pages don't pay enough attention to those cache headers.

I used Maps.me while in Europe and it worked well except for the occasional
crash, and the offline routing was very welcome for navigating the cities.

~~~
roel_v
Another one that barely works offline, incredibly: TripIt. WTF? Theoretically
TripIt would be the bee's knees, and then you stand in line at the checkin
desk and you want to show them the pdf eticket they emailed you - 'oops just
hold on while this app starts - uhoh can't connect - uh it was here just a
while ago - just wait a bit - yeah I'll be back later'.

A travel app that doesn't work off line? Never doing that again.

------
pvelagal
Better late than never. I stopped using Google maps for anything serious. Was
driving to Point Reyes lighthouse once and lost the connectivity, and spent
the next half hour aimlessly driving and came back. Felt like an idiot.

~~~
blackguardx
I've been in the same boat. Just think, 30 years ago we would have stopped to
ask for directions!

~~~
mjn
Or just looked at a map. :)

I still like to keep some AAA maps in my car as a backup in case my phone dies
or gets lost.

------
ksec
I love to have this and long for this for a long time. Downloading Data while
on the go is very battery consuming, in places where you are not familiar
running out of battery tends to bother me a lot.

------
Sami_Lehtinen
Downloading has been working for quite a while. But usually most interesting
areas are blocked and can't be used in offline mode.

------
jzd
All I use is an Android phone loaded with the OSMAND app and a small 1 sq. ft.
flexible solar panel. I'm good.

------
awqrre
Google is feeling the heat from open maps

------
ausjke
seems like a catch-up game when maps.me has been doing that for free for a
while, glad to see this to happen however.

------
zainali99
Now I can finally delete the other application and use the full power of
Google Maps.

------
0xFFC
Unbelievable ! google and offline product ? this is against whole company
ideology.I think new CEO is changing culture a little bit.

~~~
MagnumOpus
They've had experiments offline for a long time...

Gmail, Google Calendar and Google Reader used to have offline mode through
Google Gears - though a while ago they yanked it from all browsers apart from
Chrome to foist the latter onto people. Of course there is also POP3 and IMAP
for Gmail. Also, Google Maps used to have a prominent offline caching mode,
but the hid it away more and more.

------
vicpara
The time for offline was bazillion years ago. They just try to convince us
they are innovating / incubating with their billion of dollars?

~~~
jonknee
If you don't go outside of a major city perhaps, but I find myself outside of
cell service very frequently (in the mountains, radios don't work too well and
there aren't many people anyway).

~~~
zodiac
I think he meant "they should have supported offline maps a long time ago"

