Community Forums

frizfreleng · 06-06-2019, 07:24 AM

4th day out after a 13 year hiatus from camping. Camping sure has changed. To navigate I have been using my little, old Tom Tom GPS. Works okay but I believe I can do better. We do not have unlimited WiFi. So I don't think I want to drive all day with my hot spot on to run Google Maps. I have a Samsung tablet with built in GPS. I am looking for an App, I can download from Google Play Store, which will work like my Tom Tom (WiFi not used) with more bells and whistles. Any guidance or suggestions are greatly appreciated.

SLOweather · 06-06-2019, 08:24 AM

Samsung = Android, so try "Offline Maps and Navigation" from the Play store. We use it. The "Offline" bit means that you can download current state maps while in Internet range, so it works when you are out of range, or your hotspot is off.

It's free with in-app purchases for upgrades, but we've never needed to do that.

Brad2018 · 06-06-2019, 10:33 AM

Google maps has an offline mode. Just download the areas you will be ahead of time. The only limit is storage of the tablet.

Open Google Maps, select the menu icon "three lines stacked." Select offline maps. Then select "your own map option" and download to the tablet.

swsarmyknife · 06-08-2019, 09:14 AM

Google Maps hands down. If you have a phone that allows WIFI tether than you can use it instead of your hotspot.

It's free and has voice search features of POI's and routing. It shows speed limits on the road you're on, though this can't be configured for towed vehicle setup which like here in CA is 55 instead of the usual 65 or 70 speed limit if you weren't towing.

It has a lane heads up display that lets you know in which lane you should be in to make specific turns. The list of things that are in there go on and on.

Paid versions work of course too and some have specific options for RV travel where it is suppose to keep you off roads that could be potentially dangerous (low bridges, narrow streets, weight limit roads, etc), but there is nothing that guarantees it will work each time and I suggest that you check your route ahead of time anyway and understand where the navigation is routing you.

In the 8 years we have used GM for RV travel it has never let us down. It's updated much more frequently that paid versions. At least that is my observation.

lllkrob · 06-08-2019, 01:02 PM

Sorry, in a RV Google maps will get you in trouble if you are not careful. It cannot be configured for the size and weight of your RV. I would suggest the" CoPilot " app. You will need a good fast WIFI connection to download the initial program and map, after that WIFI is not needed. You can then configure it for the size and weight of your RV and it will route you correctly avoiding low bridges and weight restricted roads.

jrs · 06-08-2019, 07:40 PM

Consider Sygic Caravan or Trucker. Free trial is offered. Uses same maps that Garmin utilizes and don't need to be connected.

scbwr · 06-08-2019, 08:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jrs

Consider Sygic Caravan or Trucker. Free trial is offered. Uses same maps that Garmin utilizes and don't need to be connected.

Syrgic Caravan works for me, and it allows you to enter the specs on your MH so you don't encounter low overpasses, bridge weight limits, etc. It's based on the truck app but works pretty well. I use it with a tablet, and use google maps on my phone and an older auto Garmin unit as backups. None of them are perfect, so you still have to be careful.

frizfreleng · 06-09-2019, 05:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SLOweather

Samsung = Android, so try "Offline Maps and Navigation" from the Play store. We use it. The "Offline" bit means that you can download current state maps while in Internet range, so it works when you are out of range, or your hotspot is off.
It's free with in-app purchases for upgrades, but we've never needed to do that.

Can you be more specific? There must be a dozen Apps with the words "Offline Maps and Navigation" in the name. I downloaded "Offline Maps and Route Finder - Offline GPS" but after downloading it tells me it won't run on my tablet.

Loucurr · 06-09-2019, 05:59 AM

You shouldn’t need WiFi to run google maps navigation. I use it all the time on my iPhone while traveling without WiFi. The previous poster brought up a good point though about size and weight restrictions.

Jeffcarp · 06-12-2019, 04:46 PM

Sygic Truck is a good app. It uses HERE maps and traffic (same as Garmin) and can be customized specifically for your RV dimensions. It's expensive but it's well done, well supported and updated frequently. Maps are updated 3 times per year.

CoPilot by ALK is OK but you have to be really careful with settings or the ETA and route will be horrible. Here's detailed review to help: https://jkcarp.blogspot.com/2016/07/...st-of.html?m=1

MapFactor Navigator is a good app that by default uses free OpenStreetMap maps but you can buy TomTom's Truck Maps for $55. You can also add a traffic subscription to that app.

All three of those apps are offline maps, downloaded to your tablet.

There's some other more obscure apps that do truck routing in the Google Play Store but I'd avoid them.

If you don't want/need truck specific routing then TomTom makes a great app that looks just like their GPS devices. It's a solid product. HERE also has their own app (the brand of maps that Garmin uses).

Lots of options depending on your needs.