[VanCity778]

There are a lot of offline maps for the PB. Has anyone used one ? At $10 a pop, are they worth it ? Or should i just preload where I'm going and leave it on screen.

Any advice would be great thx

[z_scorpio_z]

I have MapDroyd (free android, side loaded), didn't really use it much but it works fine. Check if it has the features you want. You can download maps by region.

[VanCity778]

^^ Thx. I'll load that up right now.

[gailsher]

In addition to Mapdroyd, Locus and Google Maps /Latitude V6.2 work reasonably.

Gail

[peter9477]

There are a lot of offline maps for the PB. Has anyone used one ? At $10 a pop, are they worth it ? Or should i just preload where I'm going and leave it on screen.

If you search these forums, you'll find numerous past threads where people have asked about them, or ranted at them. I believe almost without exception the comments were negative, and that most people who left negative reviews said they were removed very quickly afterwards. Some people also believe most of the few positive reviews have been posted by the developer or associates.

[endrju]

Don't even think about paying for application "XXX On-Device GPS Map - Offline Map" produced by Skylab Mobilesystems Ltd. - this is 900MB piece of nothing - after downloading you have to cache freeware map from Open Street Map project. No maps included, no navigation. Hongkongian scam for 10$ ;-)

[pacoman03]

In addition to Mapdroyd, Locus and Google Maps /Latitude V6.2 work reasonably.

Gail

Google Maps 6.2 crashes if you try to enter settings, and you need to do so if you want to cache maps for offline use. Version 5.9 (and other version 5 Gmaps) will allow you to cache a limited number of maps.

[tramline]

I was one of the people that bought this and then disgusted at the developers actions.
I left a negative yet constructive comment about the lack of actual pinpointing your location. Instead it just showed the page your location was based. Also, as for on device GPS maps, anything closer that around a 20KM view needed a web connection. This was also needed for road and street names regardless of closeness. Yes it does cache pages but again only to a zoom level of around 1KM for the page view.
I left a comment stating that improvement on this would make it perfect and after 48 hours they removed it along with one other negative feedback leaving only 2 good feedback comments.
I emailed the company and RIM but never had a response from either.
Avoid!!!!

[Todor Ninov]

I was new and stupid and paid for Bulgarian map. It is just useless. Try to avoid spend money for nothing.

[joski]

Don't even think about paying for application "XXX On-Device GPS Map - Offline Map" produced by Skylab Mobilesystems Ltd. - this is 900MB piece of nothing - after downloading you have to cache freeware map from Open Street Map project. No maps included, no navigation. Hongkongian scam for 10$ ;-)

It FINALLY makes sense!!! I wonder if they'll jump into bed with TrueSupplier or SW-Box for some Junk-GPS/Phone Case promo to hook you up with a GPS that just doesn't work, and a phone case with broken plastic tabs making both useless for $10 + $57 shipping.

[dejanh]

Yeah, I got taken for $20 total for these, Canada map and Vancouver local map. Neither works as specified. Having said that, as far as online map without GPS goes, they work OK.

Rather disappointing overall

[peter9477]

Neither works as specified. Having said that, as far as online map without GPS goes, they work OK.

I suspect the free Maps(-) app now works at least as well, if not better. (The GPS feature in it is broken too, but the basic map tile management works fine so it functions as a useful offline map app and no money goes to the Skylab guy(s).)

[FF22]

Well, depending on your point of view - I was one of the lucky ones. I purchased France when it was listed at $0.99, yes 99 cents. It does cache the maps but did cause issues with backups under DM. Possibly that is because it cached about 40,000, yes Forty Thousand map files. But with pan/zoom I was able to move to the US and cache my local area, too. But, again it was 99 cents accidentally. I have since removed it due to the backup issues. But is is JUST MAPS (with geolocation) but no routing or points-of-interest.

[Unsure2]

This is another app area in which RIM just didn't do its job. Don't get me wrong, I like my PB; but, anyone wanting to introduce a tablet with a unique operating system has to do whatever it takes (bribing or paying developers, partnering with content providers, etc.) to make sure the core apps needed to compete are there from day one, especially those that highlight a useful feature of the hardware:

--Kindle reader
--Netflix compatibility
--Skype
--Video Player
--Browser
--Email
--Calendar
--Standalone GPS

Of these 8 areas (I'm sure someone can think of a few others), the PB arrived with just 2covered--the Browser and Video Player. I have no complaints in those areas; I play movies over the HDMI to my HD TV and am pleased with the result, and have generally liked the browser. With OS2, we now have, sortof, an Android Kindle reader (which crashes sometimes but does work), and Email and Calendar. But, we still lack Netflix compatibility, Skype, and a reasonable Standalone GPS app (I'll check out the Android ones mentioned--the one I tried before didn't work). Lack of adequate native GPS support is a shame, as the small size of the PB makes it ideal for carrying in a pocket or car.

Now, I realize RIM had the vision of the PB as sort of an extension to a BB phone. Not having a BB phone, I won't opine on how well it does there. But, it just made no marketing sense (and still doesn't) to leave the PB unable to compete head-to-head against other tablets in the core areas that matter to most tablet users.

[Hamp]

Check this post out:http://forums.crackberry.com/blackbe...finder-715546/

[EdY]

I'm not sure if anyone has mentioned "TrekBuddy". Completely free! I have this app both on my old Storm (which no longer has a SIM card or any phone service) and also on my Playbook, and they work great! I've used it whenever I go on a trip, it doesn't need any DATA connection and will use locally-downloaded maps!

TrekBuddy will use locally-stored maps that you download or generate using free software (Mobile Atlas Creator), and using the GPS signal from your device it will show where you are on the map and allow tracking, waypoints, calculate compass directions, speed, logging, and much more! It is awesome and completely free!

Unfortunately, TrekBuddy is not available as a direct download in AppWorld for some strange reason. However, the entire project (which I believe is open-source) has a website where you can download versions for most major platforms including both Blackberry PHONES and as well, the Playbook (although I think the Playbook version is Android which I side-loaded). The website you need to visit is:

TrekBuddy - J2ME application for offline GPS tracking

The latest release download page for TrekBuddy v.1.1.1 is the following:

http://www.trekbuddy.net/releases/1.1.1/index.html

This page lists all of the following release options for the app, for various devices:

for Symbian (S60,UIQ)
standard (Nokia S40, SonyEricsson, Siemens, Samsung, ...)
for Android 2+
for Android 1.6, includes bluetooth backport
for Blackberry OS 5.0 (and higher)
for Blackberry OS 4.2 (up to 4.7)
for Blackberry Tablet OS 2+
for IBM J9 (on Windows Mobile devices)


Once you have installed either the JAD/ALX+COD for your Blackberry phone, or downloaded the BAR for sideloading on the Playbook, you then have to make the maps for your area of interest that you will copy over to the maps directory on your device. You need to use software called "Mobile Atlas Creator" (MOBAC). This is also a FREE OPEN SOURCE APPLICATION found here:


Mobile Atlas Creator (MOBAC)


What MOBAC does it is lets you select a "region" of the globe to download, and a source map website (like Google Maps, OpenStreetMap, etc) and it will download various "zoom levels" from that region of your choosing. It creates a TAR file atlas with a bunch of subdirectories of various zoom levels, which you copy over to your TrekBuddy folder on your phone/playbook, and then configure trekbuddy to load that Atlas and voila! You have offline maps!

The only disadvantage with TrekBuddy, because it does not have a "vector"-based map or logic for figuring out routes/directions (but simply overlays your GPS position on a calibrated offline-downloaded image map), it will not figure out directions like a GPS unit would like a Garmin. However, if you are just hiking around or driving and want to know where you are, or save a route which you can later show on Google Maps, Trekbuddy will do it.

With TrekBuddy and offline maps I was able to continue to use some of my old Blackberry devices which otherwise collected dust in the closet as GPS-map units when I bike or hike, or run around the neighbourhood. I also used it when going on trips to foreign countries or island cruising, you can see exactly where you are going and it's like carrying a map around with you. Very fun indeed!