Google Maps allows you to download maps even offline and use them if the Internet is down. But pay attention to the available memory on your smartphone
With the arrival of summer, many are planning their vacations. There are those who go to the beach, those who go on excursions and those who discover a new city. For all there is a fundamental service: the navigation maps. In order to move in tranquillity it can be convenient to download offline the maps of Google Maps.
Many of us when preparing the suitcases before a vacation period think about everything to bring. From sunscreen to swimwear. Few, however, remember to download maps of the city they're going to, so that they can also consult them offline on their smartphones. This is a crucial move. Because it allows us not to get lost, especially in the most inaccessible places, and at the same time we will consume much less battery and data of the connection. It is also essential for those who go on adventures in countries with a very slow Internet connection. It should be remembered that on Google Maps the download is not available in some geographical areas due to contractual limits.
Download offline areas
We start by saying that we can't download all the maps on Google Maps. Also because the memory of our smartphone or tablet would not be enough to contain them all. So let's focus on the ones that will interest us for the vacation. To start downloading maps, take your phone and launch the Google Maps app. Let's make sure we have access to the data connection or Wi-Fi. Then we look for the place we are interested in. For example Rome. Here we choose what we want to download, we can choose only the navigation maps or those of restaurants, businesses and similar services. We go to the menu icon, the one with three vertical dots, and select Download.
Download maps to SD card
By default, Google Maps downloads offline maps to the internal memory of our smartphone or tablet. Luckily, we can also decide to save the maps directly to an SD card. To complete this operation we go to Google Maps, after inserting the card in our device. Here we select the menu and then go to Offline Areas. Then click on Settings and finally under the heading "Storage Preferences" go to Device > SD card.
How to use offline areas
Wondering how to use a downloaded map offline? It's very simple. We can behave as we do when we are connected to the Internet. So we'll see navigation directions and we'll be able to search for places within the downloaded area. Beware, though, when you are offline you can get directions to move by car, but not by bike, on foot or by public transport. You can also manage your downloaded maps offline. Just go to the appropriate section in the menu of the Google app. Here we can choose whether to delete a saved area, or rename it, update it, and see the list of all offline downloaded maps.