Sending Out a SMS…to Google

 by Lori Cunningham

I have some friends who love texting Google.  Often times, they have texted Google at 466453 to get information or find an address.  I never tried it because I found it antiquated.  Who wants to text if you have a great smartphone with a data plan?  Besides, I knew I’d never remember 466453.  (I just learned in writing this article that 466453 spells Google on your keypad!)

Last weekend, we took a roadtrip with these same friends to Las Vegas.  I was enjoying the long trip as a backseat driver since I was using my Tilt2 phone with BING navigation – which told me exactly how many minutes it would be until we arrived.  As we neared Las Vegas, we decided to visit the most famous pawn shop in the world – the one the show, Pawn Stars, made famous on the History Channel.  Only, we didn’t know where it was located or what it was called.

I opened up my mobile browser to begin searching.  My friend stopped me and suggested I try using Google text instead.  Curious, I obliged, and she gave me the number.  I texted 466453 with this message:

me:     where is pawn stars las vegas

6 seconds later I received:

Google:

     Local Listings:

     Gold & Silver Pawn Shop

     713 Las Vegas Boulevard South

     Las Vegas

     702-385-7912

Wow!  Google translated pawn stars into the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop and it gave me an address and clickable phone number to boot!

Now, I could enter the address into my Bing Navigation, but I already was using it to get to the hotel.  So instead I texted Google:

me:     map  713 Las Vegas Boulevard South  Las Vegas

Google:

10 seconds later I received a URL.  Clicking on the URL I saw a map overview and an opportunity to receive driving directions.  I also saw a sentence that read “Selected business at this address:  Gold and Silver Pawn Shop.”  Clicking on this link I received detailed information on the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop, such as its location, store hours, credit cards it accepts, it’s website, etc.  There were also 154 reviews.

More Great SMS Uses

Google SMS doesn’t stop with directions.  You can use it for all sorts of information, such as

Local info

Weather

Glossary – dictionary

Sports scores

Movie times

Stock quotes

Zip Codes

Flight status

Area Codes

Products

Q&A

Translation

Calculator

Currency Conversion

Airports

Local Time

…and more

Visit the Google Mobile SMS page to learn more on how to enter your questions more clearly to receive better Google results.  I was fascinated by the fact that you could check your flight status so I texted Google:

me:  flight aa 2111

3 seconds later Google returned:

     21 Jul 2010

     AA211

     MIA

     Depart:  11:50pm

     On Time

     Gate: D20

     LIM

     Arrive: 4:25am

     On Time

     AA:  800-433-7300

     http://m.flightstats.com

Now that’s just plain cool!  No browser to open, minimum typing, and you get results within seconds!  Try it out for yourself – remember 46653 spells out Google on your phone’s touchpad.  It’s really addictive – kinda like those Magic 8 balls where you ask a question, shake it, and wait for an answer.  Have fun!

A Favor To Ask of You

Can you please click on the big Orange “LOSE THE LAPTOP  VOTE FOR ME AND WIN” button above and vote for me on the LosetheLaptop.com site?  Every vote you give increases my chances of winning the final prize, $5,000.  And what’s even better than that?  Every vote you give also gives you for a chance to win $5,000 too!  We could both win!  Be sure to leave a comment on how you would use the Tilt2 to lose your laptop too to officially enter.  Enter daily until the end of day, July 31st.  Thanks for your support!