Here’s a quick hack to satiate our appetite for location aware applications. The Dash Express is a GPS unit with cellular and WiFi radios so it can do two way communication. Out of the box it can download maps and traffic on the fly. A little while ago they opened up the API so the device could receive info from other web services and owners could give feedback, like reporting speed traps live. The handy hack embedded above publishes your location to Twitter; we would have preferred it hit an actual location service like Brightkite. This just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to possible applications. We wonder what the adoption rate of the Dash Express will be, since the iPhone also has a touchscreen, GPS, and of course a cellular connection.
We’ve got a Dash Express in the lab and it’s based on the OpenMoko design. What sort of tomfoolery would you like to see us do with it? What do you think the killer app for the Dash Express will be?
[via Gizmodo]
What about a crash cam/incident recorder? If the thing sits on the dash and has a little memory add a camera to it and an accelerometer to record a few seconds of video before and during an accident. Or a panic button to do the same thing?
Implement with a rolling loop of images that runs all the time and is stored/uploaded in the case of a trigger. Would not need to be really high quality or a lot of images, maybe 10-30 taken at quarter second intervals.
@1: i’ve been thinking of doing this for a long time, on a carputer. Mainly for neighborhood watch type activity, though the crash detector sounds like a great idea.
For a socially irresponsible use, how about a street racing app. A virtual start and finish line using the gps to mark a quarter mile, a countdown timer displayed in both vehicles, and of course the time and speed recording capability to determine the winner. It might make an amusing proof of concept.
Interesting… Andrew, you have a project cut out for you!
I think interfacing a radar detector with the Dash Express would be a great addition, so that speed traps can be automatically logged. with enough data, heat maps can be created, and a “smart” detection service can determine risk/probability of getting nabbed…
Pleeeeeze write a program to get my dash express back on wifi. The service has been discontinued. That would be AWESOME!