The new buzzword: IoT

Culture | October 12th, 2016

By Chuck Solly

rcsolly@gmail.com

It is very hard to keep up with the new buzzwords/buzz phrases in the world of technology and computers. The INTERNET of THINGS means ALL of the devices that connect to the Internet including refrigerators, thermostats, cameras, etc, ad nauseam.

Coupled with a general lack of awareness of poorly marketed smart home products and their benefits, worries about data privacy and a lack of interoperability between various IoT products, the current market was in danger of being held back unnecessarily. The average consumer has not purchased these products because of the lack of marketing and lack of education by the manufacturers.

A basic light bulb is more than 20 times cheaper than its smarter counterpart but evidence shows that consumers are willing to pay a premium price if they understand the value of the more expensive product. My wife and I have made great use of the new long-lasting light bulbs. Changing light bulbs has almost become a thing of the past in our house.

The crucial question is whether the smart bulb, or any smart home product, offers sufficient benefits for consumers to justify the price tag which is often considerably more than the non-smart item.

Amazon just announced their Echo smart home "hub" to manage multiple things at a reasonable price. Amazon’s Alexa virtual assistant – the voice of Echo – can integrate with and control British Gas’ Hive thermostat and Philips’ Hue light bulbs, among other things. I assume Echo will migrate to the U.S. in the near future and the reason it is not here yet is the above mentioned lack of consumer education.

Partnerships between IoT businesses will be a key driver for the smart home over the next few years, said the report. For example, insurance companies may sell monitoring devices as a part of their insurance policies, or offer retail discounts on IoT technology that could protect consumers from having to make a claim.

Interestingly, insurance companies who 5-10 years ago offered lower home insurance payments for customers with alarm systems installed have mostly reduced these discounts as they had shown limited deterrent effect. The bad guys are long gone before police and/or security company people arrive on the scene.

When ‘smart’ security devices are sold without the proper customer support organization that can dynamically address and resolve the issue, they risk offering a false sense of security, by ignoring the fact that burglars are getting smarter as well. The education (or lack of) rears its ugly head again.

This situation is slowly changing. Some installers of the IoT devices can help you get the most out of your devices but you must choose them carefully. Make sure they offer unlimited tech support by phone and computer.

I need opinions here. Send me some email about your system or why you don't have a "smart home". We can all help each other to deal with this new technology.

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