Never pay for 411/information service again!
This is a great tool that I have used over and over again! I even used it recently to settle a dinner party debate about the age of a celebrity.
Google offers Google Mobile SMS, a FREE service to cell phone users to obtain various information from driving directions to currency conversion to local restaurant addresses by text message. What do you do? You send a text message to GOOGL (that’s 46645) with the information you need. You need to be somewhat familiar with the capabilities to use the application, although the program is fairly intuitive.
This is a text message service, not a mobile internet service, so if you can send a text message you can so it and there are no expensive data usage charges.
The best part is that it’s SUPER fast. You won’t be waiting around for 10 minutes to get your answer.
So what can you do?
Local Listings: This is a great deal for travelers. You type in what you want (such as mexican, blockbuster or taxi) and the location (either city and state or zip code), like this:
mexican 72120 or taxi little rock ar
If you’re in a strange city and don’t want to take the time to stop at Starbucks to get online and find a restaurant, you can use this option. Or you can use it to find a Starbucks to get online.
Weather: Self explanatory. Find out the weather for a certain city. For example, type:
weather boston ma
Sports: Get sports scores. For example:
atlanta braves
If you don’t get an answer, it probably means the sport is not in season.
Movies: Finds theater listings for movies. For example:
sound of music tallulah la
If you don’t get an answer, it probably means the movie is not in theaters.
Stock Quote: It finds – you guessed it – stock quotes. Type, for example:
DDS
Glossary: Works like a dictionary or a glossary. Begin with the word “Define.” For example:
define archipelago
Zip Code: Tells you to which city a zip code is assigned.
72201
Translation: Translates a word to a foreign language. Use the words “translate” and “in.” For example:
translate mushroom in spanish
Driving Directions: Gives you driving directions to a city or zip code. Uses the word “to.” For example:
little rock to st louis
Web Snippets: Gives you generic web results for a topic. Use the letter “g.” For example:
g central park
Area Code: Tells you to which city an area code is assigned. For example:
501
Froogle: Gives price information for products. Begin with the word “price.” For example:
price gorilla gear tripod
Calculator: Gives answers to solve math problems, units of measure or currency conversions. Uses the word “in” for all but math problems. For example:
5+2*2 or half cup in teaspoons or 70F in C or 1 dollar in pound or 3 USD in GBP
The temperature conversion is REALLY useful for we Americans who are on a different system than the rest of the universe. I’m also a big fan of the currency conversion. Of-course you don’t want to convert every purchase (ballparking usually works) but this could be handy for larger items that aren’t on your company’s tab.
The drawbacks:
For some local services, you need to know your current zip code. If you’re leaving a meeting in downtown Chicago and looking for a Mexican restaurant, you won’t have much luck if you don’t know the zip code of your location. Also, you may receive multiple text messages for one query. I tried “falafel” and received 5 separate messages. Not a big deal if you have a 200 text per month plan, but could be an issue if you’re a pay-per-text user and you use the service often.
You should know:
If you don’t have a text messaging plan with your service provider, texts usually cost about $0.10 each to send or receive. So don’t go nuts looking up the answer to every trivia question at the bar or currency conversions for a pack of gum.
For help, demonstrations and more info, go to the Google SMS page.
I learned about this from www.BusinessTravelLogue.com. If you have other tech tips or money saving tips, please leave them here in comments.
* All information believed accurate but is not warranted. All rights reserved.
