GMS (formerly Google Maps Saver)

GMS is an efficient and lightweight software utility functioning as a Google Maps downloader, that enables you to grab high-resolution maps and save them to your PC in just a couple of clicks.

The program is fairly simple to understand and work with, requiring basically no experience with similar tools, only Internet access. Moreover, GMS does not have an installer, so you do not even have to go through that lengthy procedure, all you have to do is double click it and it will launch straight away.

After running the application, you can type the name of the location you want to download, preferably the city and country for a better identification of the target and to prevent confusions due to similar or identical names.

GMS allows you to select the preferred image resolution as well as the zoom level, the maximum value being 20. Also, you can choose the 'Map Type' from the available options: 'Satellite', 'Hybrid' or 'Terrain'. You can then press the 'GO!' button and it will quickly retrieve the requested map in its main window.

After loading the map, you can zoom in or out, depending on how you require it, then select the picture format from the dedicated menu. You can choose between 'JPG Normal', 'PNG Normal Compression', 'BMP' or 'TARGA File Format'. If you opt for a 'Huge' resolution, you might experience some difficulties and unresponsiveness from GMS, so you can try saving the image to a different format, for instance. Finally, you can press on 'Save Capture As' button, and the utility will enable you to input the file name and location, saving the file to your PC.

To conclude, despite being a seemingly unimpressive tool, GMS proves to be quite useful and reliable, helping you quickly download the map you need to high quality, high resolution pictures from Google Maps.