RoadBook

A simple, private trip logger for iPhone. Version 1.0

About

RoadBook turns your iPhone into a personal trip logger. It records the route, distance, duration, speed and elevation of every drive, can start and stop itself automatically when you set off and arrive, and keeps a bird's-eye view of everywhere you've ever driven. Everything stays on your device, or in your own iCloud account. No accounts, no advertising, no tracking.

Getting started

Grant location "While Using" the first time you open the app to record a drive manually. For background auto‑start, grant "Allow Always" — iOS needs that to wake the app when you start driving (the app shows a reminder if it's still set to "While Using").
Tap Start Recording on the Record tab to begin. The big number is your live speed; the grid below tracks distance, duration, altitude, max and average speed, and elevation gain.
Leave the app or lock the phone — recording keeps going. RoadBook records in the background.
Auto‑start has three choices in Settings: Off (record manually), Only While Open (starts on its own while the app is open), or In the Background (starts even when the app is closed). For background mode, pick Battery Saver (lightest on battery) or Full Accuracy (captures a drive from the very first metre). Auto‑stop saves the trip once you've been parked a while.
Trips tab lists every saved drive. Tap one for the route map, full stats, and interactive Speed‑over‑time and Altitude‑over‑time charts (drag sideways to replay your drive). Export any trip as GPX or JSON, and expand the map to full screen.
Explore tab overlays every trip on one world map. Move and zoom with two fingers; with one finger, tap or drag a route to see which trips passed through that spot. It also lists the countries and cities you've driven through, and the map expands to full screen.

iCloud Backup

If you are signed in to iCloud and have iCloud Drive enabled, your trips are stored in your own iCloud Documents container (iCloud.com.edfd.DrivingRecorder) and follow you across your iPhones and iPads automatically. There is no separate account or password — iOS uses your Apple ID. You can see the current backup state and force a refresh from Settings → iCloud Backup inside the app. If iCloud is not available, trips are kept on the device.

FAQ

Why is altitude / elevation gain showing 0?

iPhone altitude comes from a combination of GPS and the device's built-in barometer. The iOS Simulator has no barometer and reports only latitude and longitude, so altitude reads 0 there. On a real iPhone outdoors, altitude populates within a few seconds of the first GPS fix.

Why is my average speed lower than I expected?

Average speed is computed over elapsed recording time, including any time you spent stationary (red lights, traffic). It's never higher than your max speed by construction.

Auto‑start didn't fire when I started driving.

Make sure Auto‑start is set to In the Background in Settings, and that location access is Always (not just While Using) — iOS needs that to wake the app. In Battery Saver mode the app relies on iOS significant-location-change monitoring, which can take a short distance after you set off before recording kicks in; choose Full Accuracy to capture from the very first metre. You can also pick Only While Open, or just tap Start Recording manually.

Where is my trip data sent?

Nowhere we control. Trips live on your device, and (if enabled) inside your personal iCloud account — we never receive them. See the Privacy Policy for details.

How do I get my trips off the phone?

Open a trip from the Trips tab and use Export GPX (for mapping tools like Google Earth, Strava, RideWithGPS) or Export JSON (for raw data). Either option opens the standard iOS share sheet, so you can send to Files, Mail, AirDrop, or any compatible app.

Will it drain my battery?

While recording, the app uses GPS continuously, which is energy-intensive. When you're not driving, it depends on your background mode: Battery Saver keeps GPS off and relies on Apple's very-low-power significant-location-change wake-up, while Full Accuracy keeps GPS active so it never misses the start of a drive (at a higher battery cost). With auto‑start Off or set to Only While Open, nothing runs in the background at all.

I found a bug or have a feature request.

Please email mwsupplylimited@gmail.com with your iOS version, device, and steps to reproduce. We read every message.

Contact

For support: mwsupplylimited@gmail.com

Privacy

See the RoadBook Privacy Policy.