What maps show on Apple Watch when offline (no data connection)?

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rlmalisz

• July 08, 2017 02:55

The FAQ says that you can't view vector maps on the watch when offline.  What maps *can* you view, from the ones available to a non-premium member?  I imported a KML, and when I look at its type, it's given as "Gaia Topo", which appears to be among the vectorized types not visibile on the watch offline.  So again, what is visible on the watch?

 

--Richard

PS: apologies if this shows up as a repeat...posted much the same query, and don't see it.

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  Nathan

  • July 10, 2017 19:08

  The majority of the map sources in Gaia GPS are raster maps and can be viewed offline in the watch app.
  
  However, the Gaia Topo and MapBox map layers are the only vector map sources in Gaia GPS and are not able to be viewed offline within the watch app.

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  rlmalisz

  • July 10, 2017 19:15

  So again, to my question above: importing a KML file (via Dropbox) produces a Gaia Topo type map, which the watch refuses to display...or at least, that's what I am observing.  What is the method for importing a KML, waypoints, whatever, that can be seen on an Apple Watch when there's no data connection?

   

  --Richard

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  Ashli Baldwin

  • July 11, 2017 17:55

  Hi Richard,

  Here is your other post -- looks like it was made on our old help center: https://gaiagpshelp.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/community/posts/115007045567-Offline-map-display-on-Apple-Watch

  I hope my response there answers your question -- let me know if you need anything else.

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  stormshaker

  • January 20, 2018 00:47

  New iOS subscriber here - and this was my only query after using Gaia on my first hike. With the vector maps downloaded for offline use on the phone but the phone not having a data connection, why can't the phone render those vector maps -> raster images for the watch? Why does that have to be done on Gaia's servers?

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  Ashli Baldwin

  • January 23, 2018 18:30

  Hi Stormshaker,

  Two main reasons why - but TL;DR it'd be complex to accomplish, and there'd be some downsides, too.

  1. In order to make that work, we'd need to download both raster and vector tiles to your phone, which would make the download size much larger.

  2. There is an iOS limitation that doesn't let us send the vector tiles offline by themselves. 

   

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