Internet of Things is not just a fantasy anymore. We have started to realize its presence through some of the smart devices. The day is near when the computer from home will alert the user in the office about the expiry of the medicine or about the shopping. Maybe IoT will shop online itself for the user. No, we are not selling fallacies here! These are the massive possibilities of the Internet of Things in our daily lives.
Millions of devices interconnected with each other, and humongous amount data, circulated among the networks. Internet of Things considered as the next big revolution instigating radical changes and creating a new paradigm.
The connection between human and computers through digitally connected things is the Internet of Things. Data is the backbone of the system, and these data vary significantly. The data may be in the form of simple numbers from a pressure sensor to very complex data from multiple streams.
Internet of Things (IoT) is experiencing the exponential growth, and we are in that stage where we cannot speculate the point of advancement because the Internet of Things is loosely defined.
There is a high possibility that a new smart device is made years after IoT has matured or maybe the day when launched. The impact of the Internet of Things in our lives defined superficially with the following advantages and disadvantages.
Internet of Things Advantages
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Comfort
Development activities are all focused on providing comforts to the people. What is comfort? Is coffee ready to be poured into your cup as soon as you wake up? A smart fridge that can order milk online whenever the pot is empty? A car that can drive by itself when activated on the night mode? Whatever the definition is, it all implies convenience in human lives. And with the Internet of Things, user can perform the work conveniently without complexity.
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Safety and Efficiency
Imagine working in a risky working environment, who would not like to avoid that? A smart device that can maximize safety in such places would be everyone’s choice. Efficiency is another factor which encourages the use of Internet of Things for commercial as well as industrial purposes.
For example, if the monotonous tasks can be automated such as in assembly lines, the efficiency of the system will increase resulting in higher productivity, and this will also drive higher worker satisfaction which will, in turn, increase the profit margins.
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Assisted Decision Making
It will be easier to make better decisions when there are various insights provided by reliable data from different angles. The trends from the empirical data can be analyzed more properly with the help of the Internet of Things, and strong premises achieved, and assumptions would minimize– a data-backed analysis into business insight. No decision is difficult now! (this excludes your relationship decisions, but wait, everyone would love that! Come on, think-tanks, get us a device for that!!)
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Reduced Time and Increased Revenues
Internet of Things provides improved response time, thus reducing the time taken to do any job. The baseline is that with reduced time and increased efficiency, the revenue collection maximized with the introduction of IoT.
It will also help create new business ideas and provide the ‘X Factor’ to the business, which will help you gain a strategic advancement over the competitors. It seems every road from IoT leads to increased revenue.
Internet of Things Disadvantages
There is another side of IoT which is not full of pros. Here are some problems which we face while implementing IoT
Complexity
The system itself is a complex one. Consider a situation when there are two users in the housewife and husband. Wife wakes up at 5. As soon as her alarms turn off, the coffee maker prepares the coffee. The husband had some urgent work to do so he wakes up at 5.04 without the alarm.
Now for a cup of coffee, should he set his alarm again and turn it off or should he manually activate the coffee maker or should he type a message on his smartphone and send it to the coffee maker or should he go to the restaurant for a coffee? The system will be complex. Hence sometimes, avoiding such situation will be tough.
Compatibility and Data Integration
A huge number of interconnected devices and hundreds of service provider companies. Having hundreds of standards worsen the condition. As of now, we cannot decide whether the devices would have a single set of standards, or these standards vary according to the service providers. Thus, questions raised over the compatibility of the information obtained from various devices and their integration for completing a certain assigned task.
Privacy Concerns
Millions of devices interconnected and concerns over privacy increased more than ever. Data encryption is very much necessary for maintaining the privacy of the data shared over the internet. No one wouldn’t like their colleagues to know how much milk you consume or what time do you wake up.
Threat to Security
Almost every device connected over the internet and data about everything available in the system. Nightmare situation? Yes. So, with the Internet of Things approaching nearer and nearer, the threat to security is increasing.
Consider a situation, when the milk in your refrigerator has finished and the refrigerator doing online shopping for the milk. The amount for the milk to be deducted from your bank account. You would not want the details of your bank account available that easily on the internet that easily. Would you? Every data and information freely available over the internet and hackers waiting for the loopholes. It’s a lose-lose situation for you.
Conclusion:
With few threats that can tackle efficiently, we can not overlook the benefits of IoT completely. This phase is the transitional phase for the development of the Internet of Things. The time is approaching when we see IoT as an integral part of daily life and industrial activities.