Drive-In App

Going to the drive-in as a kid was always a fun experience. I remember my Uncle getting me and my cousins into his Chevy with the bench seats and going to the drive-in. We’d get there and hook the speaker box onto the car door window then us kids would run down to the concession to buy YooHoo, hotdogs, and popcorn. The movie would start and the speaker would crackle to life, its tinny sound making its way into the car. My Uncle would shhh us kids so we could hear it.

Today, in the midst of a pandemic, the American drive-in is having a bit of a renaissance as musicians are giving concerts to cars and movies are being played again. I even read that Walmart is going to covert some of its parking lots into drive-in theaters. So I wondered what the drive-in experience is like today and imagined this little app to make it a much more 21st century experience.

Imagine if you will, an app that runs on your phone and in your car via Apple CarPlay or Android Audio. You use your phone app to order the tickets and present them on your way into the theater’s arena. You pick a spot next to a pylon with the space number and tap your phone against it, registering your location. The app knows which theater you are at using GPS.

Now you reach for your car’s infotainment screen and activate the in-car drive-in app. This app connects to the drive-in’s system and syncs up with it. Instead of that awful window speaker, the movie plays over your car’s multi-speaker system, giving you probably the best movie sound you have ever experienced. Not only that, the in-car app can display closed captioning and functions as an ordering system for the concession which can deliver your YooHoo, hotdogs, and popcorn right to your car.

So imagine nestling into your car’s seats, reclining as much as you please, enjoying massive sound, eating traditional snacks, and enjoying the American Drive-In experience.

• The phone app lets you purchase tickets, arrange food delivery upon arrival, and, if your car is not Apple CarPlay or Android Auto capable, a way to transmit the movie’s sound to your car’s speakers via bluetooth.

• The parking spot pylons at the drive-in provide WiFi hot-spots as well as electric car charging stations.

• The CarPlay/Auto app provides closed captioning, surround sound through your car’s speakers, and a way to order food for delivery.

I don’t have the resources to make this app, and who knows, maybe by the time it would be finished and tested and ready to roll out, the pandemic would be over. But I think we may be missing something about piling the kids into the car and heading off into the night to enjoy a show under the stars.

Thanks for reading and indulging in my app fantasy from yesteryear.