Offline navigation: your phone calculates the route without a signal

The route comes from the phone

The app contains a full routing engine (Valhalla). The server runs the same engine in the same version. The phone calculates real routes from the road data of a downloaded country, with no network. Voice guidance, 3D camera and cockpit work as they do online.

Download navigation data per country

Under Settings, Offline maps, each country has its own row for navigation data next to the map. The row shows the size. You confirm before the download, because the package of a large country takes several gigabytes. The app checks beforehand that enough storage is free. You download the map and the navigation data independently of each other.

Downloads that resume

The download keeps running as a foreground service, even when you leave the app. After a network loss it continues where it stopped. You see the progress and can cancel. A finished file is verified before it counts. A damaged file is skipped and the rest keeps loading. You delete finished packages with one tap.

Starting without a signal

The app quickly checks whether a downloaded country covers your starting point. Then it shows "Offline route available" instead of an error. For the starting point it first asks for a fresh GPS fix and waits up to 10 seconds. If that fails, for example in airplane mode or indoors, it uses the last known location. While you drive, the navigation corrects itself with real positions.

The signal drops mid-route

If the network fails during a running navigation and a downloaded country covers the starting point, the app keeps calculating on the device without an error message. The same goes for the route preview and for alternative routes. If the server rejects a request, the app does not recalculate locally.

What is missing without a signal

Round trips, the curvy candidate search, the speed limit lookup, "Follow me" and your own waypoints still need a connection. The app deliberately does not store live traffic data offline. The curve ladder in the cockpit is calculated entirely on the device and therefore also works without a signal.

Staying up to date

Each country has its own version. The app spots an outdated file by the version of the region. It loads updates automatically on Wi-Fi only. Over mobile data an update button shows up instead.

Offline navigation is Premium

Offline maps and offline navigation are part of Premium. During the beta everything is unlocked. After that Premium is paid, the purchase runs through Google Play and Google Play shows the price. Without Premium, downloaded files stay on the device but are not used. You can always delete them.

Frequently asked questions

How do I navigate with DriveBattle without internet?

Under Settings, Offline maps, download the navigation data of your country. After that the phone calculates the route on the device. The position comes from GPS, the route from the downloaded data.

Do I need the map and the navigation data?

Both. The offline map shows the map, the navigation data calculate the route. You download both on the same screen, separately for each country.

What happens if the signal drops during a drive?

If a downloaded country covers the starting point, the app keeps calculating on the device without an error message. Without a downloaded country there is no offline route.

Which features still need a connection?

Round trips, the curvy candidate search, the speed limit lookup, "Follow me" and your own waypoints. Live traffic data is not stored offline.

How do I update the navigation data?

On Wi-Fi the app loads new versions automatically. Over mobile data you tap the update button yourself.

Is offline navigation free?

It is Premium. During the beta everything is unlocked, after that Premium is paid. You can delete downloaded files at any time.