- What AccuTerra HD Maps are currently available? (updated March 1st)
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AccuTerra now contains over 450 ‘HD’ maps of Parks, Forests, and Recreation Areas! With the addition of SnowRanger™ Ski Areas from our partners at Mountain Dynamics, we now have your summer and winter adventures covered.
DOWNLOAD THE PRODUCT LIST HERE.
Have questions about coverage in a particular area, or want to look at our coverage on a map? Download our Google Earth KML file, and view on Google Earth.
Our content team is working on providing as much HD coverage as possible. Have a suggestion? Email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or Tweet your question on www.twitter.com/AccuTerra. Keep checking back!
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- What makes AccuTerra different from other recreational mapping applications?
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Most mapping applications on the App store can record your position & track your progress, but they require a network or WiFi connection to view it on the map. AccuTerra maps are stored in your phone’s memory, so even if the closest cell tower is too far away to give you a signal, you can access your position on a detailed color map through the GPS antenna on your iPhone 3G or iPhone 3G S.
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- Does my GPS work beyond Cell coverage?
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Yes. Your GPS can be accessed nearly everywhere you have an open “view” to the sky. The GPS functionality within the application will locate your position at all zoom levels, and the geo-coded maps provide an accurate location in terms of latitude and longitude. Most importantly, AccuTerra gives you the added advantage of having a large area of maps available on your iPhone’s memory, regardless of WiFi or cell signal coverage. What good is knowing your geographic position if you can’t see it on a map, right?
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- How detailed are AccuTerra maps?
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The standard for recreational maps is a USGS 7.5’ topographical quad. These printed maps, shown a scale of 1:24,000 or 1 inch = 2,000 feet, are sold at outdoor shops for about $5. The average AccuTerra state download contains the equivalent of about 800 quads, or about 47,000 square miles, and are priced at $9.99. If you were buy the equivalent regional maps in paper format, you could easily spend over $4000!
Some iPhone map applications offered these same paper map formats, scanned and repackaged for the iPhone. Most find the experience results in slow-scrolling, difficult to read maps that can be upwards of 30 years old. They often have only one level of zoom, and users are required to slowly download each individual map in order to view a relatively small area.
AccuTerra maps, however, have been updated and optimized specifically for the iPhone. We verify, update and re-draw these maps into a full-color ‘hill shade’ background that provides a 3D-like appearance to highlight scale and terrain. We also include public land use boundaries, such as National Forests, Bureau of Land Management lands, and National Parks, to make it easy for you to quickly identify private or public property. Finally, AccuTerra maps include a huge collection of out recreation points of interest, from a database of over one million locations.
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- Why is the road data limited to certain highways and streets?
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AccuTerra maps are designed for recreational use, and will give you trail and outdoor recreation information that no web-based mapping application can provide. We focused on providing you the most detailed-possible off-road data in recreation areas, while the more commonly used web-based mapping applications are most useful when you’re not on the trail.
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- What is a “Walking Tour”?
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This unique feature allows users to ‘play back’ their saved trails on the map to friends and family after their adventure is over. The saved track is displayed within the map, while photos taken during the hike are shown as a slideshow in the upper right corner. Note: during the Walking Tour playback, other functions of the App are temporarily disabled.
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- Will AccuTerra work while I’m using other applications?
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No - The AccuTerra application will continue to track your location if you choose to use the iPod feature before beginning your adventure, but the iPod or other applications cannot be launched after tracking has already begun.
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- How do I check AccuTerra into and out of my iTunes library?
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When you connect your iPhone to your computer, your iTunes library will display all your apps under your “Applications” folder. By using the Sync function in iTunes, you can put a check next to the applications in the folder that is labeled as your iPhone. By ‘unchecking’ the AccuTerra application, you can safely remove it from your iPhone in order to make room for other apps. IMPORTANT: If you do not wish to permanently delete the application, leave it in the iTunes Application folder and do not delete it.
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- Can I listen to my iPod music while I’m using AccuTerra?
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Of course. Far be it from us to keep you from listening to the theme from ‘Rocky’ while on your hike.
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- Does AccuTerra enable me to route my drive or hike, like a car navigation system?
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The application does not provide turn-by-turn routing on-road or off-road. AccuTerra maps offer the best outdoor recreational detail and the broadest coverage of trails and backcountry roads of any iPhone application. AccuTerra is not intended for use as an “on-road” navigation product, but is perfect for use beyond coverage typically provided in available road map applications.
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- Is AccuTerra available on other devices?
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Although having outdoor maps on your iPhone or other mobile device is convenient, some outdoor enthusiasts require a dedicated GPS device that can withstand the rigor of a rugged and sometimes wet environment. In fact, AccuTerra maps were originally developed to meet the highest mapping standards for outdoor recreational GPS devices.
AccuTerra has been available on select Magellan outdoor GPS devices since 2008. Full US coverage will also be available for certain Bushnell outdoor GPS devices this summer, and on a new line of outdoor GPS devices from Lowrance this Spring. For more details, please visit our GPS Products Page.
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- I’m concerned about my battery life while using AccuTerra - what can I do to save power?
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Using the GPS antenna in your iPhone does consume battery life, so try to minimize battery drain with these tips:
- If you are going to be out of cell range, go ahead and disable the 3G network through your iPhone settings function. [Settings > General > Network > turn off “3G”]
- Disable the WiFi network as well. [Settings > General > Network > turn off “WiFi”]
- Set your screen brightness as low as possible [Settings > General > Brightness]
- For longer trips, consider an external battery. There are many available, with varied pricing, and should offer 1-2 full recharges to the iPhone’s internal battery.
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- Will AccuTerra’s GPS tracking work in the iPhone’s Airplane Mode?
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No. Apple has disabled all radios and antennas within Airplane mode. So you can view the maps, but you would not be able to locate your current position, or start/stop tracks.
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