The Internet of Things (IoT) is an ecosystem of physical objects that are connected and accessible through the internet. The “things” in IoT could be heart-rate monitoring devices or automobiles with built-in sensors, i.e., objects that have been assigned an IP address and have the ability to collect and transfer data over a network without any need of manual assistance or intervention. IoT enables devices to observe, understand, and analyze a situation or the surroundings without being dependent on human intervention.
IoT has seen rapid growth in recent years, and this growth does not seem to be stopping any time soon. The global market for IoT technology, which consists of software, services, connectivity, and devices, reached $130 billion in 2018. There are expected to be more than 64 billion IoT devices online and working actively by 2025.
Billions of people around the world use smartphones, and that number is increasing rapidly every day. Therefore, it makes sense that mobile apps are the preferred channel for accessing IoT, due to the ease of developing them. Mobile is a far more flexible platform for transmitting data as well. With a single application on a device, IoT devices can be efficiently managed and monitored. Mobile applications play a significant role in enhancing the growth of IoT.
What Are the Benefits of IoT-based Mobile Apps?
IoT can create a very smart environment using smart devices. Paired with mobile applications that enable users to control these devices remotely, this technology is one of the most remarkable technologies of this era.
IoT-based mobile applications have a wide range of benefits. A few of these benefits are mentioned below:
Cost-Effective
IoT enables organizations to carry out the required functionalities and operations that cost a lot less than traditional methods and are significantly more efficient. The IoT devices with remote mobile applications can be used for monitoring equipment with reduced risks and costs to the human workforce.
Knowledge of Consumer Behavior
Understanding the needs of the consumer is of the utmost importance to any business. With the help of development processes using IoT, businesses can collect relevant data and statistics with the help of different resources like social media, mobile internet usage, video surveillance, etc. This subsequently helps businesses understand consumers’ preferences efficiently.
Enhanced Productivity
High productivity and output is the priority of all businesses. With the help of IoT development technology, various sectors can be manufactured, which can help businesses access and manage various stages involved in the development procedure with the help of real-time data and variables. IoT-developed applications can also help companies in monitoring and determining the most productive hours of their employees so important meetings and tasks can be scheduled during those hours.
Improved Customer Experience
The progress of any business hugely relies upon the customer experiences they offer. IoT-developed applications can help users in carrying out transactions using mobile card readers, smart trackers, etc. These applications also help the user keep track of their transactions and other such data, making the customer experience smooth and seamless.
Safer Workplaces
With the help of IoT-based applications, monitoring high-risk environments can become more efficient and enable employers to offer a safer workplace for their employees. These devices can monitor in real-time and provide data in order to identify possible threats as soon as possible.
Data Assortment and Analysis
IoT devices can collect, analyze, and report data in real-time and cut any need for data storage. This can save a lot of costs and data overhead.
Research
IoT enables users to collect massive amounts of data that would otherwise take years to collect manually. This data can be subsequently collected and statistically studied for research purposes.
Ways Through Which Mobile Apps Are Influencing the IoT Sector
There are various domains in which mobile applications are influencing IoT and making the technology more diverse and versatile. Some of the major examples are the following:
Smart Homes
Smart home mobile applications help to solve the problem of managing multiple devices in smart homes from one central user control locally as well as remotely. A single application consolidates device-specific applications on a single dashboard to provide a smooth and convenient user experience. For example, users can monitor the temperature and adjust it according to their requirements, even before arriving home.
Wearables
Wearable IoT devices like smartwatches and fitness trackers are the prime examples of the modern-day application-based use of IoT devices. These devices send data to the corresponding application in the connected smartphone. Users can access this data from the application any time they like.
Healthcare and Medicine
IoT devices have a large Applications in the field of medicine and healthcare. IoT-based applications enable critical features like simultaneous reporting and monitoring, tracking and alerts, remote medical assistance, etc. Center of Connected Health Policy conducted a study that indicates there was a 50 percent reduction in the 30-day readmission rate because of remote patient monitoring on heart failure patients.
Retail
Key applications of IoT for retailers include connected consumer, supply chain, and smart-store applications. IoT allows businesses to monitor sales opportunities in real-time on mobile applications and to track missed in-store sales, taking supply and demand planning to the next level.
Agriculture
IoT has several applications in the agricultural sector. Farmer owners can track climate changes, monitor livestock, monitor their inventory, and analyze data from a central application that is connected to the several on-field devices and sensors.
Smart Cities
Smart cities can be the most extensive implementation of IoT-based mobile applications. Applications like traffic alerts and accident alerts can warn citizens as well as authorities and help formulate contingency plans to solve the issues. Lighting is one of the most prevalent examples of IoT applications for smart cities, and many cities today are turning to wireless communications for cost savings and energy reduction. Lumca Lighting of Quebec City is putting smart city lighting to work.
Conclusion
There’s virtually no stopping IoT. It will be one of the largest driving forces of future mobile application development. Leveraging IoT with mobile applications offers improved workflows and convenience in everyday life.
IoT is a very powerful technology and can make life a breeze in a paced society. With the use of IoT-based applications, there are unparalleled benefits that could improve the quality and efficiency of businesses and user experiences.
Written by Deepak Sinha, VP of Technology at Tech Ahead Corp
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