I’m an avid backpacker and hiker, and since I live in central New York, I have the Adirondack Mountains in my backyard. When Milind asked me to test out a GPS app for my iPhone, I just couldn’t say no. I recently spent a few days hiking, and got to use GPS Kit.

GPS Kit is a full-featured GPS application for the iPhone 3G. It features route tracking, waypoints, and maps in a way that only the iPhone can provide.

Now in version 3, your maps actually cache so you can take them with you out of wifi or cell range! We have added lots of new features and vastly improved the accuracy. We are working on some great new stuff, which will be free in the next update, of course.

The first time you start the app, it will tell you that it is tracking, and each time you start it up afterwards, you’ll be asked if you want to save or erase the current track and start new, or continue on it. Now the fun starts. Along the bottom menu are five options. Map, Dashboard, Tracks, Waypoints and Info.

Everything all at once: Dashboard

The dashboard is the most informative part of the app, and what I ended up using the most. It is filled with seven cells, each is customizable so you can have the information you want. What you see here is how I configured it, and felt that it gave the most important information. The Direction cell is probably one of the most informative cells you can have. It not only tells you the direction and compass bearing, but also GPS accuracy. The five bars in the left of the cell tell you how accurate the GPS is. Currently shown at full strength, it means that it has the highest accuracy it can get. It will also show one bar or three bars. Three bars is OK accuracy, but your tracks might be a little off, and if it is red with only one bar, then GPS Kit is somewhat guessing at where you are.

Map

GPS Kit uses the well known and loved Google Maps. The map will show you where you are, and which direction you are heading with a small arrowhead. It also shows the trail you’ve hiked and any waypoints you mark on the map. You can select which view of the map you want to use, satellite, street or terrain. I kept mine on terrain all the time as it shows the important data about hiking, elevation changes. One of the greatest benefits I saw on the Map is the ability to cache maps. Often when hiking in remote areas, you have no cell service.

With GPS Kit, you can use view the map at any zoom level you want, and it will be cached for when you are on the trail. I usually went with 2-3 zoom levels. One to get the entire area I was going to be in, so I could see how far I’ve travelled, and how much more I had left. The second zoom level was much closer, so I could see terrain details. The third zoom level, if I used it, was someplace in between. One major flaw on the map though, is that there is no scale.

Above the map between the buttons is a cell, much like the dashboard cells. I kept mine on heading, but you can select whichever you like, it has the same options as Dashboard. Also on the top are the locate button, a measure button, to measure the distance between two points, and the map settings button. In the settings, you can select which map view you want, empty the map cache if you cache your maps and turn on tracking, waypoints, and the proximity sensor.

Tracks

Each time you use GPS Kit, it saves your GPS points as a track. You can view these tracks later, as long as you save them. The best feature about Tracks is the ability to upload and share them. You can also download tracks that other GPS Kit users have uploaded, but you have no way to telling how close they are to you. When you upload them, you aren’t only sharing them with other users, but you can email them to friends or yourself.

The email you send includes three links. A Google Earth file, Google Maps link, and a GPX File. The first two open up in the appropriate Google location, but the GPX file is a little different. The GPX file can be open in most GPS apps, including the popular Trailrunner. Once viewed in a GPS app, you can see the trail, and elevation, how fast you were going, and all the other details you might want.

Waypoints and Info

Waypoints are used to mark a place as a destination. Very useful if you are into geocaching. Adding waypoints to a map is done by double tapping a spot on the map screen. You can save and share these waypoints with other GPS Kit users, and you can also download other users waypoints, but unless they title them, it is very hard to tell where or what the waypoints are for.

The Verdict

While GPS Kit takes a little bit to get used to, it is feature packed, and an excellent companion for someone looking for a GPS app on their iPhone. There are only a few things I’d like to see added: one is a scale on the maps, and second, to be able to see an elevation profile view along with the map. Both are fairly important details to a hiker.

Both of the hikes I did with it were fairly short day hikes, and each time, I went out with a full battery. When I was back off the trail, I only had about 25% battery left. I’d recommend using the low-power mode if you plan on using GPS Kit for more than 6 hours, and if you are going out for an extended trip, get a battery expansion pack or portable charger you can use on the trail. By default, GPS Kit will use the proximity sensor and shut off the screen while your iPhone is in your pocket, but using the GPS chip is very battery extensive.

Overall, I liked GPS Kit; it will be spending some time on my iPhone until a better app comes along. Available now on the iTunes Store for $9.99, only for the iPhone 3G and 3GS.