While at home I always turn off the location feature on my cellphone (I'm sure I can still be tracked if the NSA so desires but I don't want to make it easier).
However when travelling I turn it back on, for two reasons. One is obvious, it makes using Google maps so much easier because it knows exactly where you are.
But it also tags my photos with exact location, date and time. Which is handy when reviewing them later, even though you can still go in and edit that info.
Very good, phred, but don’t you use google and photos when not traveling?
I don't need to brand my local photos and always know where I'm going :)
I usually keep all location services and features turned off and will turn it on when I travel. I do like the "Timeline" feature and I like to look back through the timeline created while I travel and reminisce about where I was. I am humored by the inaccuracies that show up in the timeline. I'd walk from the hotel, pass St Paul's and into Co-Op or Tesco Express for groceries and Google insists that I visited St Paul's.
I am/was a tech head, running eCommerce sites for a huge multinational for many years. I keep my location services on all the time. But turn off most apps from being able to access them, including the web browsers. Something to know though, even if you have location services turned off your phone because you are paranoid, it knows where you, are based on the SSID's your WiFi can see. (and probably due to the cell tower your phone is communicating with constantly all day long when its turned on) I always get a chuckle when I read or hear folks spouting the government is trying to put a tracker in you via a vaccination, but why would they spend the money, you are paying a phone company monthly to do that for them. -Bill
Well, I move around solo in the U.S., same as I do when traveling. So I leave my location turned on all the time - will make it easier for my kids to find me if I quit answering them.
However I am with Bill in that I turn off the ability for most apps to use my location, unless I am using the app (for selected apps - think Uber). Fortunately I often get to go places where I don’t know the directions, so leaving location on for Google Maps is great.
While at home I always turn off the location feature on my cellphone (I'm sure I can still be tracked if the NSA so desires but I don't want to make it easier).
No NSA needed. The cell location system for mobile telephony tells the network where you are - pretty much accurately.
Instead Google Maps I recommend Sygic Navigation App which works with pre-loaded country maps on your phone - no permanent connection needed which tells others where you are.
Or instead of installing some other app you know nothing about, you can just download the google map area for Offline Use, for where you are going prior to needing it (or turning off your cell data), as an example, I just downloaded the map for Rome, then I can turn off cellular/WiFi and still use your phone for navigating that area when there, That can be anywhere in the world, you don't need to be there yet (although I am not sure the Chinese/North Korea allow that, but probably everywhere else allows it)
I often do that from home prior to going to somewhere I am not sure how the signal will be, or if I want to reduce the cellular data usage while somewhere I might have to pay extra for it, like when I head to Europe next spring.
Years ago, prior to getting Starlink early last year, we drove our Motorhome down the Cassiar Highway (2019}from the Yukon toward Prince George BC, 500 miles of no cell signal (was the exact same on the 2023 trip) I downloaded that whole area while in Alaska with service and the navigation worked perfectly. Fast forward to the 2023 trip down the same road, we had Starlink In-motion Dishy mounted on the roof that gave me phone and data the whole trip which was amazing to say the least! But I still downloaded maps for the whole area just in case Starlink didn't work up there, it was an unknown to me at the time.
Below is the HowTo..
To download a map of somewhere from an iPhone open google maps, click on your icon (top right) about 1/2 way down the list that comes up, click on Offline Maps, click on Select your own map, mine always defaults to where I am, so I scroll around to find the area I need. (often I zoom Out first to make it quicker to get to the area) Then you can zoom back in once there (pinch your fingers together or out to change the size of the map you want to download) Once you are satisfied with the area you need. (there is a limit to the area, so you may need to download more than once) Click download map. It can take a bit and will continue in the background on WiFi, you can turn on downloads via Cell Data if you want to. Once its done, I often rename it so I know what it is and can delete it to free up space on the phone when its no longer needed. You go into offline maps again to remove them when you don't need that place anymore. You can also update it just prior to going there if you downloaded it long before traveling.
-Bill
