Fortunately, there's a way to preload maps, but it's not intuitive: type "OK maps" in the search box and tap the search icon. You'll see this message: "pre-loading maps" or an error message: "the on-screen area map is too large, zoom in first". If you see the error message, zoom in and type "OK maps" again. It's annoying to this again and again.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBYwJ2u2znRv2oZUPHGZ9IvQ6SKsdzZ9-aqZWMXZkPjlKaU3E2P6FsLa6mXLTc1UenXLXWHvoBl3VPCH7evymQr3yeBNPK7VNlgqDY8vb4MigxnIRmN4k5Laf-7kLcJsTylUjW-Q/s640/ok-maps-1.png)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizW-39crWrqX5lOuVkwFc31dOZJvvh7RCOPtQMlyt7TLutkzDqMwimHFq0EN566Oh2Y9BI_77XlOFkAQBLsc7D6wWN21iNZDNrfjVG-EiGeuyfoCYlR-jnAT47blsfxKHsI-3grg/s640/ok-maps-2.jpg)
Another downside is that you can't manage your offline maps. Here's a screenshot from the old Google Maps: you could quickly find cached maps, check how much space they use, rename them or delete them.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAQdE4KTUel-r3wDn3CMC_JyJIMeSCufcUTXXuvNYCC3Mmexe3YdR3JvJDPDVr5FeHVbTR_e12amS2qxwi_is0VD9KUCC5coQZoMYVu6De2gSc8FxNAuMLodEyxW-rmR1y060g5g/s640/google-maps-manage-cached-maps.png)
Hopefully, Google will add the offline feature to the interface in a future update and make it even better. It would be nice to save bigger maps and to use the offline maps for local search, directions and navigation.
Update: A new version of Google Maps added this option when you tap the search box: "Make this map available offline". It's less cumbersome to use, but still a patchwork.
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