On mobile phones that have the Google Android operating system there is the built-in GPS navigator Google Navigator that works very well. On Android there is also Google Maps which allows you to search for addresses and places on the online maps provided by Google.
The drawback is that the maps are always online, that is, they cannot be saved on the smartphone memory card.
This makes it impossible to consult the city map if the mobile phone is not connected to the internet.
Although many people who buy a smartphone rightly have a subscription to surf the internet with their mobile phone and take advantage of all the functions of the phone, when going abroad or if they are in areas without a field and not covered by 3G connection, it becomes impossible to use the Google Navigator effectively.
Without having to pay for a navigator that keeps maps and roads in the memory of the mobile phone, a free application called Locus can be downloaded on Android phones and smartphones .
UPDATE: The Google Maps app on Android also works offline with downloaded maps .
Locus is, in fact, a program for Android that allows you to save maps of all kinds on your mobile phone so you can always have a street map, even without an internet connection.
Particularly useful for hikers, Locus allows you to choose which maps to use among the many, free, available.
At the first start there are no offline maps so, with the phone connected to the internet, you go to see the streets with Mapquest .
By enabling GPS it is possible to follow your movement on the road as the navigator does, even if there are no driving directions.
The most important function of Locus is to save the maps on the external memory of the smartphone .
To download a map you must first load the Google map by choosing it from the online maps that appear by pressing the button at the top right.
After loading the MapQuest classic (the lightest), press the button at the top right again and tap on Download Map .
If you proceed with the select area (there is also the possibility to save a route), the online map reappears and, touching the screen with your finger, the part of the map that you want to save on the mobile phone turns green.
You need to zoom in to include, for example, Milan and the interland.
Once the area has been selected, zoom to the maximum and press on the confirmation with the green V. On the next screen, name the map and choose the zoom levels to save .
For each level of Zoom, the download size is specified, which can also reach several GB depending on the detail and size.
Let's say that Rome and suburbs with the zoom that shows the names of all the streets, even the small ones, occupies about 800 MB.
Obviously the download must be done with a wifi connection but it can be interrupted and resumed later.
Forgetting to think about saving the whole map with all the streets of Italy, it would be a download of more than 10 GB and it would take a lot of time.
Anyway, if for example you plan to make a trip to Paris, you can download the map of the city center so you can have the street map and everything in your Android phone.
Better than Locus (which does not work to save Google Maps), in another article the best Android apps with GPS maps and offline navigator are downloadable
