The Internet of Things has become increasingly popular and we expect it to be a major part of our lives in the future. IoT makes regular, everyday devices become “smart”. Now it is not unusual to purchase fridges which can let you know when you are out of eggs or audio speaker system which can be your personal assistants.
If you are not that familiar with the term, the IoT refers to adding network connectivity to regular objects. These allows them to perform functions which would have never been possible before. IoT can be used for regular households, but it can also be incorporated in enterprises as well. In fact, it is believed that IoT devices could change the way most industries operate.
When it comes to customer IoT devices it appears that streaming devices, home automation devices, and smart speakers are the most popular options. More than 20% of the American households have at least one of them. And the numbers are expected to go up.
What are IoT devices?
While IoT devices are those connected to the Internet, devices such as smartphones and computers don’t count. That is because they have been designed to do that from the start. IoT devices are the regular ones which were not traditionally connected to the Internet.
A booming market
In the past years the Internet of Things has evolved a lot. More and more devices become available on the market and the revenue generated has become huge. For example, the number of connected devices was 8.7 in 2012, and IoT sales generates $200 billion annually. It is believed that the number of connected devices will go up to 50 billion in 2020, and the annual revenue will reach $1.6 trillion by 2025.
Ernestina Saenz Salcido is a reporter for News Lair. She mostly writes on her free time about gadgets and tech news. When she’s not working she takes care of her 2 daughters.
