I use this app for MTB and hiking route mapping and navigation. It’s fab.I find and plan my own routes using the website route builder. Also import GPX routes other people have created or I’ve paid for and keep them private for my own use.If you pay for the online OS map subscription you can log on whilst on WiFi it 3/4G and move in and out of the route map area to cache the tiles for when you’re out of signal range. I love that you move between 25k and 50k when zooming in as I would never buy both before and try make do with 25k. I also use google maps and google satellite when route planning. Having all these map tools at your disposal makes it very clear. Personally if I’m going to be doing a lot of complex route navigation in a wilderness area, I still buy the offline map for reassurance. Yes, you need to either buy OS maps for the area you’re going to or pay for the unlimited access. You can’t rely on free google maps when you’re in the middle of the countryside halfway up a mountain!Yes, navigation is battery intensive. Screen + gps + searching for signal in poor signal areas is battery intensive. Take a power pack with you.

I’ve been using this app since 2012 and have bought quite a number of maps. I use it all the time both when on holiday to record our touring and find interesting terrain and also at home to plan our holidays.Apart from the frustrations of having to redownload maps on occasions, being forced into subscriptions, becoming progressively slower - more so after the latest release, being prompted for suggestions about how to improve the user experience but not getting any feedback here are three things I would like to be incorporated.1. Enable your recordings to be sorted chronologically not numerically as it is very frustrating when trying to look back over your journeys2. To be able to freeze the current scale when zooming. Different information is given at different resolutions, using it in the car is totally different to using it for walking. Finding a route in the car does not need detail information and it is very frustrating just when the size of text is readable it suddenly shrinks and the information you want disappears. The size of the screen and resolution of the device makes a big difference to what you can actually see as does having older eyes.3. When reopening the app, more often then not, I would like to return to the same selection.

I’ve been using Outdoors GPS for ten years on and off, and watched it go from superb to reasonable to dreadful. I like the simple interface and the “view” icon which easily shows which way you’re looking. However, having paid £20 for OS Maps 6 months ago I feel cheated. It’s like buying an airplane for its sleek lines when the bolts on the wings are dangerously loose. Looking at the high rating reviews there are obviously people for whom Outdoors GPS works admirably but lately, having plotted a GPS track on Outdoors GPS online, I feel it is reluctant to appear on my phone, and if it does may appear at some random spot down the list. Then, having eventually downloaded to my phone, there is always an element of HOPE that my paid-for OS maps will appear on my phone when at my destination. On the last three occasions, despite following instructions and having the downloaded map seemingly on my phone... nothing. This last time there was no OS map behind my route despite fiddling with it for ages, yet when I finished the walk and opened it again, it had magically appeared. I have other options, but for people who rely on downloaded maps for safety, this app gives absolutely no guarantees and it’s time to stop wasting my time. Hello Viewranger.

This is generally a good app, with good OS coverage throughout Britain. It is very much let down by the poor customer support, if a question is easily answered they do so, however more complicated issues are simply ignored! In addition there are differences between the offline OS maps and the live (OS unlimited) maps. At the same scale and supposed level of detail, the offline maps has less, missing and incorrect detail, for example it has paths missing or mislabelled (i.e. a bridleway marked as a footpath, or permissive paths not marked at all). This has been a major issue when walking out of phone signal range. I normally carry a paper map as backup, however why am I paying for a service which doesn’t provide the correct information? I would recommend looking around for alternative OS apps before paying to use this one. At least till they resolve the discrepancy in their maps and improve their customer support.