iPhone and iPad

Besides myTracks for macOS there also exists myTracks for iPhone and iPad including the foloowing features:

myTracks for iPhone and iPad

The iPhone and some versions of the iPad have an integrated GPS receiver and can be used as a GPS logger using my iOS app myTracks - The GPS Logger. A user manual for myTracks - The GPS Logger is also available.

Copy recorded tracks to your Mac

In case you don't want to use iCloud synchronization there exists an alternative. You can synchronize the recorded tracks with myTracks on your Mac. Tap the button with the three dots, scroll down a bit and tap Synchronization. Enter an arbitrary password and start the service:

Now start myTracks on your Mac. In the File menu select Synchronize with iOS device. Afterwards a window will appear with a list of all available iPhones. An iPhone will become available if it is in the same WiFi network as the Mac itself and if the synchronization service has been started before. There is no need to connect the iPhone using USB. The following screenshot shows the dialog:

Select your iPhone, enter the same password as on your iPhone and select the action Load tracks from device. Click Synchronize to import the tracks from the iPhone into your desktop library. This action will not only import the tracks but also the photos taken during track recording on the iPhone. The photos will be copied to the folder that is specified in the dialog (Photo folder location).

Copy desktop library to your iPhone

The second feature is the synchronization of your desktop tracks including the photos from your Mac to your iPhone. You can use this feature in case you don't want to use iCloud synchronization.

Due to the fact that storage space is limited on an iPhone myTracks does not copy all photos to the iPhone automatically. You have to select the corresponding tracks manually. The photos are not copied in the original size but myTracks creates a scaled version of each photo. To select a track open the Track Properties view and check Synchronize photos:

To start the synchronization select Synchronize with iOS Device from myTracks's File menu. As action please select Send tracks and photos to device. Depending on the number and size of your tracks and the number of photos to be copied this action can take some time. If you synchronize a second time the synchronization will be much faster because the photos aren't copied again.

After a synchronization myTracks has added a folder Desktop Library to the track list. This folder contains all tracks of your Mac.

Troubleshooting

Sometimes the synchronization dialog on your Mac does not list your iPhone. In that case here are some hints:

  1. Try to restart your iPhone and then try again.
  2. Check whether iPhone and Mac are connected to the same wireless network.
  3. Check whether there is any firewall software installed on your Mac or whether your network router is blocking some ports. myTracks uses Apple's Bonjour technology for synchronization. There is an Apple support page listing well known TCP and UDP ports used by Apple software products. Have a look at the Bonjour related ports on that page.

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