Dash Navigation Announces GPS Industry's First Wireless Software Update and Sends New Features and Enhancements to Dash Express
Dash Gets Smarter About Drivers' Everyday Commutes with Features
Including MyRoute(TM), Search Along Route(TM), and FasterFind(TM)
SUNNYVALE, Calif.--(Business Wire)--
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News Facts
-- Dash Navigation, Inc. (www.dash.net), the first Internet-connected
automotive GPS device, today became the first GPS provider to
wirelessly update customers' device software over-the-air without
requiring them to separately purchase and install upgrades via a PC
or DVD download. Later today, Dash drivers will automatically receive
the software update over WiFi by simply turning on their Dash
Express.
-- The June08 Update adds several new features designed to answer
customers' everyday commuting questions such as "Is my route the best
option today?" or "Where is the closest coffee shop along my route?"
The MyRoute(TM) and Search Along Route(TM) product enhancements make
the Dash Express even more relevant for everyday commuting.
-- The June08 Update also includes a new GPS fix feature called
FasterFind(TM) which dramatically decreases the time it takes for the
Dash Express to find its position and start navigating.
-- Subscribers of the Dash service receive ongoing software updates
throughout the year including historical traffic information from the
Dash Driver Network, new features, software improvements and updated
maps.
-- The June08 Update includes the following new features and
enhancements:
-- MyRoute - Maps and traditional GPS devices are great
navigation tools, but they will never replace local street
smarts. Drivers often know the best shortcuts to and from the
places that they frequent, but what they really want to know
is whether their route is the smartest route today based on
current traffic data. Dash is the only GPS that learns routes
automatically based on user behavior. With Dash's new MyRoute
feature, as drivers travel from one point to another, the
device automatically learns their preferred route. The next
time that they drive between the same origin and destination,
the first route choice will be a MyRoute, complete with
traffic-based arrival time data. Drivers can compare their
MyRoute to the computed Dash routes, including traffic
detours, and decide which one is optimal.
-- Search Along Route - Finding whatever drivers need on the
road using Yahoo! Local search just got even easier. With the
new Search Along Route feature, Dash drivers can now search
for virtually anything they need along their selected route,
shortening diversions on the way to their destination. Want to
grab a latte on the way to a meeting? Simply do a Yahoo! Local
search for "Starbucks" and select "along route" to be
presented with the stores that are most conveniently located.
Results are displayed with the distance from the current
location, the distance from the route and the direction of the
destination relative to the selected route.
-- FasterFind - With FasterFind powered by SiRFInstantFix
technology, Dash Express uses additional over-the-air GPS
satellite position information to get a fast GPS fix so Dash
drivers can be underway in seconds. Since the Dash Express is
connected, the FasterFind file is automatically and wirelessly
downloaded at regular intervals providing users with the most
accurate GPS satellite position information available. There
is no need to connect to a PC or wait to get a GPS fix.
FasterFind not only helps drivers get a quick start every time
the device is turned on, it also enables a fast GPS fix under
difficult conditions such as beneath tree cover and near high-
rise buildings.
-- Performance Enhancements - Continued system upgrades have
enabled significant progress in overall device performance.
For instance, the June08 Update increases the speed in which
Dash Express draws its maps by more than 50%. It also enables
quicker toggling between 2D and 3D map views and smoother map
zooming.
-- User Interface Improvements - The June08 Update also
includes numerous user-requested refinements to the Dash
Express interface, making it even more intuitive for daily
use. These improvements include tuning the route selection
screen to make it easier to select among the multiple route
choices, improving the readability of road labels on the map
and expanding the night mode color scheme across more menus
for glare reduction.
-- In conjunction with the first of its kind software update, Dash
announced that the Dash Developer Program, launched in May, is off to
a great start with over 30 partner and user-created DashApps(1) that
enable consumers to access a wide range of personalized content in
their cars - weather, garage sales, real estate listings, speed
traps, Twitter - and more!
The company's newest partner, EveryBlock, collects and publishes
neighborhood and block-level news in cities including Chicago, New
York and San Francisco. With the EveryBlock DashApp, launched today,
drivers in those cities can access a "neighborhood feed," including
public records (e.g., crimes, restaurant inspections, building
permits), and user-contributed knowledge (e.g., local photos posted
to Flickr) -- all filtered geographically according to the vehicle's
current location.
Quote from Dash Navigation
-- "Unlike existing GPS devices, the Internet-connected Dash Express,
is the first system designed to keep learning and getting smarter
over time," said Paul Lego, CEO of Dash Navigation. "Today's software
update is just the beginning. We're interacting with our customers on
a daily basis, gathering their input and incorporating it into the
product. With our newest features, we're able to help our customers
quickly get the answers they need during their daily commutes."
(1) Content provided by third party developers through the Dash
dynamic API is not under the control of Dash and as such is not
always guaranteed to be available.
Please contact Hillary Houser to arrange an interview with Dash.
Hillary@sparkpr.com or (415) 321-1877.
To subscribe to the Dash blog news feed, click here.
Multimedia Elements
Video Demos
(http://flickr.com/photos/dash-nav/sets/72157605844928124/)
Product Photos
(http://flickr.com/photos/dash-nav/sets/72157605844928124/)
Corporate Logo
(http://flickr.com/photos/dash-nav/sets/72157605844928124/)
Quotes:
Quote from Yahoo! Local:
-- "It's been great to see that Yahoo! Local search is such a popular
Dash feature with users, as we are always looking for ways to extend
the utility of our site so that people have access to timely and
relevant information whenever and wherever they may be," said Frazier
Miller, general manager of Yahoo! Local. "We helped Dash bring this
exciting new feature - Search Along Route - to their device through
recent updates to the Yahoo! Local API and we'll make these same
updates available to the broader developer community in the coming
weeks."
Quote from Gartner Analyst:
-- "The ability to wirelessly and seamlessly upgrade the functionality
of a GPS solution is critical for ensuring long-term customer value,"
said Thilo Koslowski, Automotive Practice Leader at Gartner, Inc.
"Wireless upgradeability also enables companies to evolve by adding
new content, create new business models and embrace new
partnerships."
Quote from EveryBlock:
-- "Basically, the EveryBlock DashApp means you can see public records
and other recent news near your car's current location -- crimes,
building permits and a bunch of other stuff," said Adrian Holovaty,
founder of EveryBlock. "If I were a real estate agent driving clients
around Chicago, New York or San Francisco, having this device in the
car would be insanely useful."
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Company Information
About Dash Navigation, Inc.
Dash Navigation connects people to the information that empowers
them in their cars. The company's first product, the Dash Express(TM),
is the first personal navigation system with two-way, Internet
connectivity. It's the smartest way to get from A to B -- and get
information about everything in between. Dash is located in Sunnyvale,
Calif. and is funded by Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Sequoia
Capital, Skymoon Ventures, Crescendo Ventures, Artis Capital and
ZenShin Capital Partners. For more information, visit Dash Navigation
at www.dash.net.
Dash Navigation, Inc.
Gina Aumiller Bender, 408-543-2957
gbender@dash.net
or
Sparkpr for Dash Navigation, Inc.
Hillary Houser, 415-321-1877
hillary@sparkpr.com
Copyright Business Wire 2008
