I grew up, like many people, in a household where food was a big part of our lives. We definitely did not have a lot of money for some things, but we always ate well even during bad times. We also fed our guests well. Even when they said no to more food, we always made it hard to refuse. I remember one friend, whose family dinners were a little sparser (in terms of food) had to stand up and yell, “No more thanks, I really am full!”
I felt the same the other day when I noticed that I was having issues with my home router. It seemed that I simply had too many devices on the network for it to perform well. Sure, all of the devices connected, but it got so bogged down, it made it impossible to do much. When I took notes to see what I had connected, I was stunned to see this list (note, not all of them were connected/ being used at the same time):
- 6 PC / Mac
- 5 iPads
- 3 Apple TVs / other TV products
- 2 Smart TVs
- 6 or so Smart wall plugs
- 3 Network printers
- Multiple sensors
- Multiple smart appliances…
I think there were a few more, but I stopped counting. So, I had to upgrade my router to a new Tri-band model, one that seems to be handling the local traffic with ease. It appears that it will be one that will handle our household’s routing duties for a while…. or will it?
I’m all for technology…I’ve made a great living selling it for close to 2 decades. But, I wonder at what point will our appetite for home-based technology be satisfied? When will we finally say, “No more thanks, I really am full!”
I also get that I am a bit of a technology nerd and our household may be more extreme than most. However, with the rise in connected home devices – ranging from sensors, to lighting, to access control, to video to even smart garbage cans – this is a trend that will affect most homes sooner than later.
The Bottom Line
As I have written previously, many companies now consider themselves to be IoT companies – the “easiest club to join in the world”. With IBM’s recent announcement of a multi-billion dollar investment in IoT, expect this trend to not only continue, but to accelerate. I guess I am wondering at what point do the sheer number of devices become so excessively commonplace that we lose interest? At what point will our IoT appetite be satisfied and we will finally be full?
