The Internet of Things (IoT)

The Internet of Things (IoT), is all about connecting your devices. Just as you can connect your smart watch to your smart phone and you can connect your smart phone to your car, you can now connect things like your oven to your smart phone. The internet is no new thing, but it used to be a product of people. People used to connect people by creating the data and imaging and things of that nature, but now it’s things that are connecting people to other things.

Things can now share their data with other things. An example of this would be connecting your smart phone to your computer. The calendar on your smart phone can be connected to the calendar on your computer, the text messages on your smart phone can be connected to your text messaging app on your computer, and your photos on your smart phone can also be viewed on your computer. Connecting your smart phone with your computer is old news, but there are new developments in the internet of things that might surprise some people.

Have you ever lost your wallet or the keys to your car? There is a new device that can connect to your smart phone and alert you, helping you find the things you misplace. It’s called Tile, and it’s a device that you put in your wallet or secure on your key ring. If you misplace either object you can simply go to the Tile app on your smart phone, press a button, and the device that is in your wallet or on your key ring will sound an alarm so that you can follow the sound and find your misplaced object. Another new development is the Amazon Echo. This device includes microphones and beam forming technology, so it can hear you from across a room. It has Bluetooth connectivity and WIFI that can connect to any number of devices. The Amazon Echo can control things in your home like the lights in your house or your thermostat. It can also do things like tell you how the weather is outside, play music for you, and use Google to research things for you. Some people are fascinated by these new developments, while others have concerns.

New developments in the IoT are changing our lives and how we do things every day. In an article on the Forbes website, Jacob Morgan states that, “”The new rule for the future is going to be, ‘Anything that can be connected, will be connected.'”” I think this statement is already becoming true. Some people believe these new developments are fascinating and great for our society, but in some ways these new developments are causing concern. I think the biggest concern with new developments in the IoT would be security. Especially with more and more data being stored in the cloud, cybercrime will be more frequent. With new developments like self-driving vehicles, the last thing anyone would want would be for someone to have the ability to track their vehicles without their knowledge. Another example would be the security system in someone’s home that is connected to their smart phone. They would want reassurance that if their smart phone was to be lost or hacked, that no one would be able to access their security information to their home. I think that if the cloud was more secure, people might have a more opened mind to these new developments.

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