Importance of IoT devices in Daily Life

More than 5 billion people on planet Earth have access to the internet. The world is hyper-connected socially, economically, politically, and environmentally. But have they ever wondered how everything is being held so smoothly and effortlessly? All credits are to be given to IoT. So, what is IoT? In IoT, all the devices are interconnected, but first, they are connected to the internet. All of which collect and share data among themselves.

While reading this article,14.4 billion IoT devices are connected globally and are estimated to reach over 24 billion by 2030. With endless possibilities, IoT is a swiftly evolving phenomenon. And experts believe that this phenomenon is here to stay for a long time.

Here I have listed seven daily life applications of IoT

Smart Homes

IoT sensors collect data like our preferences of music, artists, temperature, and our routine, like the time we wake up, have meals, go to bed, etc. Home automation has been the successful application of IoT so far. Lighting, smart home appliances, voice assistants, smart switches, and locks are a few examples of how our lives can be made more accessible by automating our homes. It is needless to stress safety and security as we can control all our devices through our smartphones. Full-scale home automation can cost thousands of dollars, but smaller single products cost less than 100. Some of the subsections of a smart home are −

Smart Home Security

Smart Cameras

Gate cameras, door cameras, CCTV cameras, and inside cameras like baby monitors are some examples of smart cameras. These cameras have wireless internet connectivity, making them accessible from anywhere.

Biometric Locks

In modern houses, entry is restricted with biometric authentication, and users can only enter the house with a facial or fingerprint scan. They provide more security and safety, which justifies their growth in demand lately.

Fire Sensors

Most smart homes include a Carbon Monoxide (CO) detector. These detectors are set up to notify you if the CO level in your home reaches an exceptionally high level.

Smart Kitchen

Wi-Fi Fridge

We can keep track of ingredients, and you can see what's in your refrigerator while you are at the supermarket, so you don't overbuy.

Hot Drinks That Stay Hot

Your preferred hot beverage will be kept at the recommended serving temperature by the cup when the app makes a recommendation. The app will suggest how long to let the bag steep if you prefer tea. The best part is that you don't have to worry about charging it because the plate it comes with wirelessly charges the cup's battery when it isn't in use.

Healthcare

The Healthcare sector includes doctors, patients, hospitals, and health insurance companies. Patients wear wearable technologies like fitness bands and blood pressure monitors. While technology cannot reverse the aging of the population or prevent a pandemic from occurring, it can help humanity by making monitoring easier. It can save lives in medical emergencies like heart failure, diabetes, asthma attacks, etc.

IoT devices collect the patient’s data, like blood pressure, oxygen, blood sugar levels, ECGs, and weight. This collected data is then stored in the cloud and made available to an authorized person, who could be a physician, consultant, or member of an insurance company.

Smart Cars

Through IoT, we can connect cars to exchange information like speed, dynamics, and location. A recent breakthrough in smart cars is driverless cars. Though it seems like it's from the future, driverless cars are already being made. With the help of high-end sensors like gyroscopes, these cars are connected to cloud platforms and the internet.

Wearables

Watches, rings, and wristbands with biometric sensors can measure blood oxygen levels, glucose levels, respiration rates, and heart rate and variability. These wearable gadgets gather and store the raw data before sending it over a cellular or Internet connection to a cloud infrastructure. A common component of wearable technology is an accelerometer, which counts steps taken and recognizes emotions like falls or golf swings. The gadgets can calculate travel distances and pinpoint your location using global positioning satellites (GPS) links. For example, Smartwatches (e.g., Apple Watch), Fitness Trackers (e.g., Fitbit), Smart clothing (e.g., Owlet Smart Sock 2)

Conclusion

IoT devices will get smarter as they gather more data. By using IoT-connected devices, cities will become "smart cities." But it's not as fancy as it looks. There are some privacy concerns attached to the success of IoT. It is not just our data sensors that are collecting; they have our behavioral patterns and can be used against us.