Thanks to the ubiquity of cell phones, there are a whole host of possibilities for using your phone to queue up services you'll be passing shortly on your way to work, or on a long car trip.

For example, a coffee chain like Starbucks could allow its users to select a portfolio of 4 or 5 stores that they pass regularly, and then have the user text message a central phone number with a 1-5 number representing the store they will be passing. Each customer could also have a list of their favorite drinks, each with a number, 1-10. The customer could thus text one Starbucks number with the store she is passing and the order she wants, and that store will have that order prepared in, say, 5 minutes, so the customer can walk right in and pick it up. Payment could occur either at the store or through the phone bill.

Another application would be on long car trips. The NYS Thruway has rest stops along its length so that drivers can get food and use the bathroom without having to pay a toll for getting off the Thruway. A central NYS Thruway rest stop could post the menus of all the restaurants along the Thruway, and allow drivers to place an order before they leave home. The order will be sent to the restaurant and prepared once they text message a NYS Thruway number, for quick pick up on the go.

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