Coming soon: order your latte from your car

If you've been hankering for a latte but just don't want to get out of your car, Starbucks already has a solution: find one of its drive-thru locations (30 percent of its existing stores have one). Indeed, the company said in a recent earnings call that 60 percent of new stores opening in 2013 would have drive-thrus, according to Business Insider.

But that still leaves you will the interminable wait until your piping hot beverage is ready. Starbucks hopes to solve that problem as well. According to Brian Sozzi, chief equities analyst at NBG Productions, "Starbucks intends to lay the groundwork to tap into the next round of technological innovation from inside the automobile."

This means that using in-car technology, which may soon see significant enhancements, users would potentially be able to order their drinks remotely, before arriving at their nearby Starbucks location.

"You love it as it saves a precious 10 minutes, Starbucks loves it because it facilitates store level efficiency and impulse purchases," Sozzi wrote. "Plus, think of the integration potential of Starbucks’s mobile app with an in-car device; the company can send special promotions when you may not even be pondering a coffee purchase."

Starbucks has also recently put its weight behind Square, the mobile payments company, investing $25 million last year, using the technology in its stores, and even encouraging customers to purchase Square mobile card readers.

Sozzi said the partnership was a sign that Starbucks has plans to integrate the payment and order processes.

Photo: Starbucks

via [Business Insider, Geek Wire]

This post was originally published on Smartplanet.com