WalkStyles DashTrak Pedometer

The WalkStyles DashTrak Pedometer is my dream pedometer - a full-featured pedometer (steps, distance, calories, stopwatch, alerts, backlight) that also allows me to upload it all so I can enjoy graphs and charts of my steps, distance and speed. Plus, you can log personal goals in an online or print wellness diary. With an optional heart rate monitor strap, you can also track your heart rate throughout your walks and view it on the pedometer as well as uploading it.

The WalkStyles DashTrak has all the pedometer functions you could hope for: it displays steps, distance, calories, time, alerts, stopwatch, and it has a backlight. Plus, you can upload your data to the internet for ongoing graphs, stats, and wellness diary.

Size: The DashTrak is sized same as most pedometers, 2 1/4 inches wide and 1 1/2 inches tall. It clips very securely to your waistband and comes with a security leash for good measure.

Noise: The DashTrak is less noisy than many pedometers I have tried, but does have a slight click with each step.

Accuracy: The DashTrak appears most accurate when walking at a steady pace, it matches my usual step count per mile. You can manually set the sensitivity setting if you think it is overcounting steps. It doesn't edit out "junk steps" as some pedometers do.

Daily Rechargeable Battery: The DashTrak lithium battery must be recharged every 1-3 days, either with a recharger or by leaving it plugged into your computer USB port for two hours.

Optional Heart Rate Monitor: Add the heart rate monitor strap and you can track your heart rate both on the pedometer and upload heart rate information to the web site.

The DashTrak comes with a USB cord. On first use, you register for the WalkStyles.com web site, and set a few basic bits of information about yourself. Weight is needed to calculate your calories burned. The set-up was simple with one hitch - you must use Microsoft Internet Explorer as your browser to connect to the web site. I generally use a different web browser.

You can upload your data as often as you wish. The USB cable makes it easy for you to travel with your DashTrak and upload and recharge your battery from an internet-connected computer that has a USB port. This is also convenient for using at both work and at home if you just can't wait to upload.

Costs: The DashTrak comes with a free 1 month WalkStyles web site membership. At the end of 1 month, the subscription to the web site is $9.95 per month.

Your steps for the past two days are displayed, estimating distance and calories burned. It also logs whether you were at an aerobic pace for at least 20 minutes - arbitrarily designated at 15 minutes per mile or faster.

Your weekly summary includes your days at 10,000 steps and how you rank among other DashTrak users, noting how many more steps you would need per day to improve your rank to the next level. Your membership summary totals all steps since joining and the number of days you achieved 10,000 or more steps.

Other features of the Dashboard include a handy local weather forecast, a word of the day, inspirational quotes, and a view of how all DashTrak members are doing.

To get stats on a walking period, you open the DashTrak and start it logging your steps as a Step Event, and when done tell it you are done. This will then be uploaded to the web site with specific stats for that walking period. This includes steps, time, distance, speed, and whether you were on the 15-minute mile aerobic pace for 20 minutes or more. It includes a graph of your pace throughout the Step Event.

Next Page: Wellness Journal, Community, and Heart Rate Monitoring