Dash Navigation has opened up pre-orders for its Dash Express automotive GPS system. What sets the Dash Express apart from other vehicle-based GPS systems is that it builds in two-way Internet connectivity via Wi-Fi and GPRS networks, enabling a new set of capabilities not normally seen in GPS systems. For one thing, users can create routes and send them to their GPS wirelessly fro any Web browser. But, perhaps more intriguingly, it collects real-time traffic information from the Dash Driver Network, which includes anonymous polling of other Dash Express devices, and can calculate new routes as traffic flow information changes. Information from Dash Network can include data on sides streets and local roads, rather than just monitoring traffic on main thoroughfares and arterials.
Physically, the Dash Express features a 4.3-inch, 480 by 272-pixel widescreen display with touchscreen capability, a two-hour battery live from its built-in lithium-ion battery.
Dash is in the final phases of testing its current hardware, and plans to have units in consumers’ hands by February 2008. The Dash Express itself is priced at $599; in addition to the up-front cost, the Dash’s unique features require a Dash service plan, which are currently priced at $12.99 a month, or $10.99 a month for a year’s worth of service, or $9.99 a month for two years’ service. Dash will not charge the credit cards of customers participating in the pre-order program until orders actually ship from Dash in February.
