The Dash Express is the high water mark of the latest generation of GPS units.

In addition to regular GPS functionality, it also has the best yet ability to route you to your destination based on close to real-time information about traffic congestion.

Dash Express GPS review Clunky design but great functionality and value
	The Dash Express is huge and heavy compared to other 4.3" screen GPS units. But if you can see your way past its clunky styling and unnecessary size, you'll find a unit with a great deal of intelligence, and which is our current 'best of breed' winner. Part of our series on GPS - additional articles to be published in coming weeks - see links on the right.

The Dash Express hides the beauty of its capabilities underneath its ugly exterior.

But it is worth disregarding its oversized physical form factor, and when you look at what it can do and how well it does these things, you too are likely to forgive its designers and agree that this is a 'must have' unit and at a very fair market price.

The Dash Express is currently our 'best of breed' recommendation.

SAD NEWS - UPDATE 3 Nov 08 :  Dash has just announced that it plans to get out of the hardware business and to concentrate instead on licensing its technology to other GPS manufacturers.  See this article for commentary and the official Dash press release.

This is very sad news and means you need to more carefully consider buying a Dash unit with the now uncertain future of its support ahead of it.

The Dash Express GPS - What You Get

The Dash Express comes with a good collection of inclusions, and conveniently packaged in a cardboard box.

A large and very sturdy mounting bracket is provided, complete also with an extension piece and an adhesive disk.  The disk allows you to mount the unit to the dash as well as the windshield, and the extension piece gives you still more flexibility as to where and how you mount the unit.

Two power supplies are provided - one for in the car that goes between the cigarette lighter and the mounting cradle, and a mains power adapter for when you have the Dash inside.

A USB cable is also provided, along with a 'do not use' notice - the USB connectivity has not yet been enabled in the unit, but is expected shortly.

As well as the unit itself, there are two printed guides - a getting started guide and an installation guide.  The getting started guide can also be downloaded from their website, and while its name implies there might also be a more detailed guide available, that does not appear to be the case.  Fortunately, the getting started guide is clear, well laid out and well written, and in its 24 pages of data, gives comprehensive information for the user.

A lightly padded zip up nylon carry case is also provided for when you might be traveling with your Dash Express unit.  The case holds the unit itself and is useful/necessary as a way to protect the screen, but provides no way to also store the mounting arm or either/both power supplies.

Two decals are also provided.  But we suggest you do not affix these to your vehicle at all - it is a signal to potential thieves that you've a valuable GPS inside your car.

A thank you letter from Dash's CEO (a form letter rather than personal one) was a nice final touch to the inclusions offered.

The unit has a 30 day return policy and a one year warranty.  It also comes with an initial 'free' 90 days of its interactive data service.

Using the Dash Express

The unit is easy to use.  It has an easily understood interface for most simple things, and presents an uncluttered clear mapping screen.

It is quick to lock on to satellites and the map display is clear and easy to adjust and follow.

There is a bit of ambiguity in terms of where and how to find some of the added value services - for example, if you want to look for a nearby gas station and see the prices they sell gas for, you don't choose the 'Search' option, instead you take the 'Choose a Destination' option and then choose the 'Browse Places to Go' option, and scroll down to the Gas option.  A similar path is used to access information on what movies are showing locally and at what times.

The Dash Express's Traffic Service

One of the two main things that set the Dash Express apart from other units is its revolutionary approach to analyzing current traffic flows.  When planning routes for you to drive, and advising on traffic conditions, it makes full use of all the current 'best practice' technologies including the wonderful range of traffic data services provided by Inrix Corp.  So far, so good.  But that's not all.  Dash add another layer of data to that available from other sources - it adds information on current traffic as reported by other Dash owners.

Because the Dash units have both-way communication capabilities, they can not only receive traffic information but also relay information about the traffic they are experiencing back to the central database resource.  The GPS part of the unit is able to send information back about where the unit is, where it is going, and the speeds it is proceeding at.

And so, every 15 minutes, Dash sends out traffic update data that combines information from all the different sources, and displays it on your screen.  Where traffic information is known, it is shown in four colors (green, yellow, orange and red for successively worse traffic flows), and in two patterns - solid lines for realtime Dash information and dashed lines for historical, predicted, or secondary sources - and this information is offered not just for freeways but also for major surface streets too.

This gives you a comprehensive and accurate understanding of what type of traffic to encounter and how to plan your driving, better than any of the competing products on the market.

Dash declined to comment on how many units they've sold so far, other than to coyly (and meaninglessly) say 'we are pleased with progress of sales', and clearly the more Dash users there are, the more comprehensive this traffic information becomes.  To my surprise, and at whatever present level of users exists, there is already quite comprehensive traffic data (plus all the supplementary data from Inrix and other sources) making the Dash concept already practical and positive for us as users/beneficiaries.

That is not to say the unit is perfect.  Its routing technology sometimes suggests strange ways to go places - for example, as I write this, it is advocating a route that involves unnecessary travel on surface streets that it is showing as congested, rather than taking the freeway which would be no more distance and which it is showing as open and free flowing.  Goodness only knows why it decided to offer the route it did, and while it offered one alternate, it also included the same craziness at the start of the route, and while the unit sometimes offers more than two choices, in this case it is only offering two route options, both of which are stupid.

But, as disappointing as this is, I'm able to use my local knowledge and the other information displayed on the Dash to override its recommendation, and if I were in an unfamiliar city, its recommendation, while not optimum, is still better than nothing.  Plus, there's a great feature - any time you encounter a problem or flaw (such as this) with the unit, you can send a problem report to Dash.  In this case, clicking on the 'Report Problem' button sends a full report to Dash about where I have been driving and why, and when I augment that automatic data with details (in response to an email they send to my regular email) they have all the information they need to review and hopefully resolve the issue for the future.

So, not to close this section on a negative or neutral note, it is fair to say that in terms of traffic reporting and routing, at its worst, the Dash is no worse than other units out there, and at its best, it is amazingly better than all the other units available.

The Dash Express's Interactivity in General

The Dash Express has a built in data-com capability that uses the GPRS cell phone data service to send and receive data.  This in effect connects the unit to the internet as well as to central data services at Dash, and allows you to do many things which are not possible with other units.  For example, you can search not just the points of interest file in the unit, but you can also look for things through the Yahoo Local internet listings as well, giving you potentially more up to date and more extensive information than would be in the local POI file alone.

It also enables a wonderful new way of preloading address information to the unit.  Here's a typical scenario that we all encounter - we research online on our computer and find a place we wish to drive to, we write down its address, and then painstakingly enter the address into our GPS in the car to navigate to it.  With the Dash, you can simply send the address from your computer to your Dash unit, and it is received on your Dash within 3 minutes of it being sent.  No need to worry about the hassle (and possible error) of entering the address into your unit in the car.

You can also, using a similar process, send pretty much your entire address listings from your 'Contacts' in Outlook or wherever else to the Dash as well.

There's another neat way to get the information you seek, while you're driving along in the car.  You can call from your cell phone either of two different free '411' type services, work your way through the voice recognition prompts

And the Dash automatically updates itself with the latest software and map type information, too, almost without you realizing it (you get occasional messages that there's an update to download, and you click 'Yes' to accept the download).

There's a whole new dimension to the Dash that makes even more use of this interactivity - and that is its open ended operating system and the ability of other people to develop and provide not just custom lists of points of interest, but also entire new programs.  One such example is a list of free wireless hotspots that can be overlaid on your Dash.  Others - and there are probably hundreds already available, and for free, offer all sorts of capabilities ranging from flight tracking information and airport delays to stock quotes to weather to other location based information services of every type, even allowing you to see the values of houses as drive by them.

Overall, this extends the Dash Express from being merely a passive 'intelligent map' to becoming an open ended intelligent travel management and planning device.  Its interactivity is a game-changing capability and brings a whole new dimension of functionality to the unit, way beyond that of a simple GPS unit.  Look for the major suppliers to copy the Dash Express and come out with their own versions, but until/when/if that occurs, the Dash Express stands out from all other units and offers vastly more functionality.

Price and Value

The Dash Express first went on sale back in April 2008, and at that time was listed at $600.

While the price was in line with other units from other manufacturers, it was also an ill-advised move on Dash's part - they need to price low to build up a 'critical mass' of users rather than price high to gouge early adopters (as is the typical pricing strategy for new high-tech gadgets).

Fortunately, Dash quickly came to realize the error of their ways and so they slashed the price down to $300, which makes it very competitively priced, even before considering its extra capabilities.

When one considers its better traffic and its interactivity and the growing mass of applications that can be added to the unit, it quickly becomes outstanding value.

A special offer for Travel Insider supporters

If you are a Travel Insider supporter and have contributed $10 or more in the last 12 months, we can tell you how to buy this unit for $199, saving you $100.

If you're not already a supporter, please consider becoming one - spend $10 by supporting this website and get a $100 saving in return.   Here's the link to join.  If you are already a supporter, thank you very much; simply send me an email asking how to buy the unit for $100 less than anywhere else.

Monthly costs

In addition to the up front purchase price, you also need to sign up for monthly data service.  This ranges in price up from $10/month (if you buy two years in advance) to higher monthly costs if you commit to lesser blocks of time.

$10/month might seem, on the face of it, a lot of money to pay, but consider what you get in return.  First, you get free map updates, whereas with other companies you'll pay for this.  Garmin for example, charge $70 for the annual map update, so you can consider that $6 of your monthly cost is the equivalent of map updates.

As for the other $4, you only need to use the cheapest gas locator a couple of times, and if you buy say 15 gallons of gas each time and save 5c a gallon, you've saved almost half that ($1.50) plus experienced the joy of shopping wisely for your gas.

The other $2.50 is quickly justified by considering the superior traffic reporting you get - how much would you pay per minute of your time you avoid being stuck in traffic, and for the comfort and certainty of knowing you're taking the best route somewhere.

Which leaves other benefits such as the interactivity, extra applications, online searching, and so on and so on, all as bonuses.

Dash Express Recommendation

Whether you buy the unit from Amazon.com for $299 or through the special Travel Insider supporter option (see above) for $199 the unit presents as excellent value and offers excellent functionality, doing everything you'd expect of a typical GPS plus offering plenty of unique extra features and services as well.

Maybe other GPS manufacturers will, in time, copy the capabilities of the Dash, but until such time, this is clearly the best choice for almost all intending GPS purchasers.

This unbeatable combination of great price and great functionality make it our current 'best of breed' unit.  Highly recommended.

Feature Analysis
 

Feature Test Unit Model Dash Express Price List price of $299.99 (when the unit first went on sale earlier in 2008, it was listed for $599). Available through Amazon.com for $299. Limited availability at $199 through a special source for Travel Insider supporters - see above. Review Date/Details Unit was reviewed in Oct 2008. Its software was immediately updated, and - as a nice feature - automatically updates from time to time over its wireless data connection. Currently it is running : Software 2.1.0.1984 OS version 2.1.0.40 Map data 3.0.1.121 Traffic data 0.0.1.53 Warranty 30 day money back guarantee and one year warranty. Support Online and via phone (877 500-3274). Phone support is Monday - Friday 9am - 5pm and is based in the Pacific time zone. The phone is answered quickly by generally sensible support people. Inclusions The Dash Express comes with a complete set of inclusions.  As well as the unit, there is its windshield mount plus an adhesive plate if you'd rather mount it to the dash.  There's a mounting arm extension and Allen key wrench to give you more flexibility about how and where the unit is located, and a carry case if you choose to travel with the unit. There's a USB cable complete with a request to not try and use it for transferring data (this is apparently not yet enabled) plus power cords for either in-car use (via cigarette lighter) or from connecting to the mains power. An installation guide and getting started guide are also provided. Runs out of the box Yes, in theory you simply mount it, plug it in, turn it on, and it starts working. A quick registration on their website is necessary to enable the data services. I needed to charge mine sufficiently for it to power on, however, a process that took several hours.  The battery was too flat when it was first received for the unit to be able to both charge itself and power itself, so I had to wait about four hours before I could start using the unit. Size The unit is ugly and huge, quite unlike other GPS units.  While the website claims the reason for the size is that it has multiple receivers in it and batteries to power it for two hours, when you compare the size/weight/etc of the unit to a regular cell phone that also has multiple receivers, a GPS, and vastly longer battery life, it can be seen that this is an excuse not a valid reason. Speaking off the record, a Dash employee conceded that the original unit had been over-engineered.  There is, alas, no plan for a new smaller sized model to replace the current unit. The huge size of the unit - and its mounting hardware - makes it much more prominent in your car and more a magnet to people considering smashing in and stealing it. The unit's maximum dimensions measure 4.8" wide x 3.7" tall x 2.7" deep.  The depth dimension is curved, at the top center it is 2.7", at the bottom center it is 2", and it tapers to about 0.7" on the sides at the bottom.  The unit is ugly and ungainly. Weight The bulky unit weighs 13.4 oz, and when combined with its monstrous mounting bracket and power supply, the weight climbs to 26.4 oz - more than 1½ lbs.  Compare this to other units with the same size screen that in total weigh less than half this - ie 12 oz instead of 26.4 oz. This further shows the poor design on the part of Dash. Mounting Accessories The unit comes with a massively over-engineered screen mounting device with a huge suction cup at the end of it.  Perhaps it is necessary to have a larger than normal mounting device due to the unit's larger size and weight, but even so, this does seem to be overkill. An optional extension piece makes the mounting device potentially even bigger, but offers more flexibility in how and where the unit it located, and an adhesive plate allows the unit to be affixed to your dash rather than the windshield if that is more convenient for you. There is also an optional 'bean bag' mounting accessory sold on the Dash website. Screen Size 4.3" diagonal screen 2.1" x 3.7" =  9:16 aspect ratio Screen Pixels 272 x 480 - the standard resolution for this screen size. Screen Colors Unknown but sufficient. Screen Visibility The screen is reasonably clear and easy to read in most lighting conditions. The reasonably high pixel density allows for easy reading of map details and text displayed. Screen Backlighting Yes, multiple levels offered. Day/Night Mode Yes, can be set to switch automatically or you can manually override this and switch it as and when you wish. Controls The unit has three physical controls - an On/Off switch on its side, a menu/map toggle button on the top, and also on the top, a speaker volume/mute button. All other functions are controlled via soft menus on the touch screen. The extra two buttons, compared to most GPS units, add to the ease of use of the unit without adding to the complexity of its operation. Interactive help files available No. Limited functionality when moving No - all options are available when driving. Graphics processor speed Very good. GPS Receiver SIRFstarIII - an excellent receiver. It has a 'Fast Find' feature to help it locate satellites more quickly when you first turn the unit on. Reception is good and signals are quickly acquired. Max number of satellites simultaneously tracked 20 WAAS enhanced Yes. Dead reckoning capability No. Satellite display Not really. A 'Geek Screen' merely lists 33 satellites and shows signal strength for each one, and shows the overall unit's status as being No Fix, 2D Fix or 3D Fix. Accuracy calculation No. Can the unit show you your current latitude and longitude and compass heading The latitude and longitude is shown on the Geek Screen. There is a very basic compass rose shown on the main map screen. Can the unit show you your current altitude No. Can the unit show you the exact time No. External antenna capability No. This is the first regular GPS unit I've found that doesn't support an external antenna. CPU processor speed Not known, and the unit performs calculations and screen updates at only a moderate speed - calculating routes in particular is appreciably slower than with other units. Trip Computer functions Limited. If you touch the car icon while driving a route, it will advise you some statistics, presumably related only to that route, ie, current speed, distance traveled, total elapsed time and time spent stopped, average speed and maximum speed. The unit will also show you either the distance remaining, the time remaining, or the expected arrival time for the route you're driving. Battery Type Lithium Ion. Battery Life Two hours claimed.  Note that typically when the unit is turned 'off' it is in standby mode and still consuming a small amount of power, and the unit can be in standby battery powered mode for about 2 days. This is much less battery life than comparable units, although probably not an important feature limitation because it would be rare that you'd choose to use the unit away from your car. Power Input The unit can accept power through the supplied cigarette lighter adapter for the car, or through the supplied mains charger units. There's something strange about its charging, and I was unable to get an understandable explanation from Dash on this point.  Their mains charger connects to the unit's USB port and charges through that.  Their mains charger seems to be a typical standard USB charger, and I've used it to charge other units through their USB ports too.  But the Dash Express will not charge when used with any other USB chargers or when connected to a USB port on a computer. While Dash could not tell me why this is, they did suggest that this limitation will be removed when their latest version of software is released. Auto Power On/Off Yes.  The unit remembers programmed destinations when turned off and on, and gives you the option to resume a previous route when turned on again.   Mapping Map provider Tele Atlas. Countries provided Only the US. Update policy, frequency and cost Map updates are distributed through the wireless data service, typically on about a quarterly basis, and the cost of the map updates is included in the monthly data fee (which makes the data fee a better value than it first seems). Dash unofficially advise that future map updates will be distributed through a computer interface rather than over the wireless data network (due to the size of them - it would take too long to send them over a GPRS signal).  This will also necessitate enabling the USB connectivity between the unit and a computer, and that is all expected to occur sometime in the next short while (whatever that means). Other countries also available Not yet.  Canada is expected to be added in the fairly near future, any other countries (eg western Europe) are much further out. How is map data loaded into the GPS receiver Map data is pre-loaded on the unit in its internal memory. Can the entire US be loaded into the unit Yes. Speaks Directions Yes.  Uses a computer type female voice, but reasonably good quality.  No choices of voice offered. Speaks Street Names Yes. Languages spoken Only English. 2D/3D Yes, you can choose between these options. Can you choose between North up or Direction of Travel up Not really. When zoomed out a long way (ie showing a lot of area on the screen) the unit automatically switches to north up mode, which is sensible.  When zoomed in closer, it automatically switches to direction of travel up mode, which is also sensible, but it would be nice to be able to override the unit's assumptions about which mode is best. Split screen mode No. Map Scale Shown It briefly tells you when you change zoom levels but then disappears. The unit does not automatically zoom. Number of POIs provided Over one million POIs are loaded onto the unit.  But this is only part of the story - the unit relies on its access to Yahoo Local data to vastly increase its POI information through its wireless connection. Everything I've looked for, so far, has been easily found. Number of user POIs that can be added You can add up to 256 addresses to the unit which are sort of analogous to user entered POIs, and beyond that you can then add 'Saved Searches' which can be groupings of address data too, giving considerable flexibility for storing saved POI data. POI information includes phone number Yes. POI proximity alert No. Speed limit warner No.  But does offer a third party application - Trapster - to advise of the location of current and historic speed traps. Does it show both miles and kilometers No.   Route Planning How to enter addresses and other data There are several clever ways to enter address information.  You can type it into the unit via a QWERTY keyboard on the screen. You can also send address information over the internet to the unit, including direct from Outlook (except for Outlook 2007) and your web browser as well as via the Dash website. There are additionally voice recognition services you can call to search for things or addresses and have them send the information direct to your Dash unit also. Can you build a multi-stop journey with waypoints Not yet. This is expected to become available in the next version of the software, due to be released fairly soon. Will it solve the 'traveling salesman' puzzle No. Can you program assumed speeds for different road types, and if so, how many different road types? No.  But the unit attempts, wherever possible, to calculate traveling times based on real current traffic data, which is usually a much better approach than just using average speeds. Can you choose different settings for different types of vehicles No. Can you program preferences for road/route types No. Does the unit present you with multiple route choices to choose from Yes, it shows you different routes on the map and describes the distance to travel and projected travel time for each route option. Usually you are presented with two route options, sometimes three. Can you choose between fastest/quickest and shortest route options Yes, using the information presented after you've selected a destination. Will it show breadcrumb trails? No.   Extra Features Bluetooth No. Export data to laptop Not yet, possibly in the future via the USB port which is not currently supported. Can it play MP3 or other digital audio No. Can it play MP4 or other digital video No. Can it display pictures No. Integrated with real time traffic reporting Yes. The unit provides what seems to be the best, most comprehensive and most accurate real time traffic reporting of all units tested so far, and includes data not just on major freeways but on surface streets too. Integrated with other location services Yes, including gas prices and movie times. Other features The Dash Express has been designed to be an open system that allows third parties to offer applications to run on the unit, using the OpenMoko software platform. Some applications are already being developed or released, and as the unit becomes more widely known, it is expected that a growing number of extra applications will become available. There are also nice extra features, like, for example, should your Dash unit ever be lost or stolen, you can have Dash send a signal to the unit to disable it.

 

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Originally published 10 Oct 2008, last update 21 Jul 2020

You may freely reproduce or distribute this article for noncommercial purposes as long as you give credit to me as original writer.