5 mind-blowing IOT trends to look out for in 2022/23

The internet of things just keeps getting bigger and better. Each new year seems to be its best year so far. That trend looks set to continue in 2022/2023. Here are just some of the mind-blowing IoT trends to look out for in 2023.

Here, the PSU Designs share their opinions on the future of IoT.

New levels of security and privacy

Concerns about security and privacy have long been a drag on the growth of the internet of things. In hindsight, overall this was probably a benefit. It forced the stakeholders in the IoT sphere to go back to fundamentals instead of forging ahead with technological developments.

In 22/23 and possibly the years beyond, there will be strong efforts to ensure that the IoT offers the highest standards of security and privacy. This will then be used as a foundation for future growth.

New emphasis on sustainability

Probably the most obvious example of this is the shift to 5G. The headline benefits of this are its global coverage and much faster data transfer rates. Both of these will significantly benefit the IoT as IoT devices need reliable internet connections to function.

Another benefit of 5G is that it is massively more energy-efficient than current technologies. In fact, it can be up to 90% more energy-efficient than 4G (per traffic unit). There is also growing interest in other low-energy networking technologies such as satellite technology.

The IoT devices themselves will also be developed to ever higher standards of energy-efficiency. This will be driven partly by concerns about sustainability and partly by economics. In short, the more energy-efficient IoT devices are, the more cost-effective they are and hence the more attractive they are.

Wearables and personal care will converge

The early attempts at wearable tech were not a huge success. In particular, the introduction of Google Glass (in 2013) was met with widespread derision. The product was hugely expensive, had limited functionality and was often difficult to use at all, let alone effectively. In hindsight, it was essentially a prototype for modern augmented-reality headsets. As such, it should arguably not have been released to market.

During the intervening years, however, manufacturers have gained a much clearer idea of what customers want and how to deliver it. Now wearables are starting to make a real impact in the consumer market although they are often doing so largely undercover. For example, smart watches (and other jewellery) and fitness trackers are essentially just wearable technology.

These devices are likely to become even more mainstream as consumers look for ways to have more ownership over their own health. They will probably be encouraged in this by the healthcare industry. Wearable tech devices could potentially provide medical professionals with much more accurate data than a patient’s own memory.

The IoT will start to be bundled with purchase

A lot of what is now core technology got to be that way by being bundled with something someone was going to buy anyway. Probably the most obvious example of this is Microsoft Windows. It became the world’s default operating system by striking deals with PC manufacturers to have it preinstalled on the machines they sold.

This strategy is almost certainly going to be applied to the IoT to push it out to enterprises in general and healthcare in particular. Organisations will be encouraged to use it to gain access to big data and its analytics as well as to leverage the potential of machine learning. Bit by bit, this will then trickle down to consumers.

The IoT will make locations smarter (and safer)

Thanks to the IoT, buildings are becoming smarter and smarter. Efforts are now underway to expand this to wider locations such as cities. As the technology matures, it will be pushed out more and more widely. Eventually, it will make its way to rural areas where it may help to solve the problems they face accessing essential services.