All the science fiction novels, cartoons and films that ever envisioned a machine-integrated future are all gradually turning true. Interfaceless screens, gesture-based inputs, watches that could make calls and send messages and more, every wild imagination is becoming a reality. Today, we are connecting not just with other humans in a better way but finding solutions and bridges to connect with machines as well. Devices and gadgets are increasingly becoming an active part of our lives and are consistently empowering us with insights based on data we generate every minute.
This is the era of wearable devices, where products like FitBits, smartwatches and more are replacing conventional watches. Every single heartbeat is monitored and detected for anomalies, vitals are being tracked for patterns and even cardiac arrests are being predicted before they occur. With so many benefits wearable devices offering us, this is truly an amazing time to be alive.
However, wearable app development wouldn’t have seen such a dynamic rise without the simultaneous increase of its allied peripherals and tech concepts. From IoT and data analytics to GPS technologies and GPS systems, wearable app development has been influenced by several tech offsprings.
In this post, we are going to explore exactly that and understand how the development of diverse tech concepts have inevitably made wearable app development seamless and unbound.
Let’s get started.
5 Solid Foundations For The Growth Of Wearable Devices Being Laid Right Now
The Internet Of Things
Wearable devices are part of an ecosystem of connected systems we call The Internet Of Things (IoT). With the incorporation of cloud services and internet connectivity, wearable devices consistently generate, transmit and process data for insights and actions. Apps at the receiving end of the system display required information for the user to decide based on purposes.
As IoT environments are becoming more efficient and powerful in terms of their processing capabilities, battery life, durability and more, wearable devices are increasingly becoming equally powerful as well. Apart from commercial implementations of wearable tech, newer devices such as glucose trackers, asthma monitors, Bluetooth-based cancer tracking apps, connected pacemakers, wearable defibrillators and more are rolling out in the market. The healthcare sector is a major industry that will benefit from wearable app development services with deeper integration of IoT.
Data Ownership And Interoperability
Extending the previous point a little more, let’s understand that IoT is only a temporary version of a use case prevailing now. In the coming years, IoT will transform into IoE or The Internet Of Everything. Every physical device will be connected to the internet and in turn an ecosystem of networks and devices to work in tandem with each other for humans. Experts already estimate that close to 31bn devices will be connected to the internet in the next four years.
As more devices connect to achieve common and overlapping purposes, data sharing and ownership will be defined better and made more airtight. This goes without saying that data security and confidentiality will be at the fulcrum of everything. To execute actions, automate processes and tasks and offer insights, devices in IoE would need data from other devices and touchpoints. So, newer protocols and standards will be established to enable data sharing and interoperability. Artificial intelligence modules will also be trained to operate with minimal data requirements and obsolete methodologies like caching will be done away with.
Collectively, such a development in wearable app development services will allow stakeholders across two distinct corners of the spectrum to get relevant data they need.
GPS Enablement
The increasing advent of autonomous vehicles is rewriting conventions in terms of taking a concept and exploring newer use cases with its deployment. Currently, self-driving cars come with advanced GPS devices that offer real-time updates for instantaneous driving decisions. Such precision mechanisms are absent in current wearable devices. The existing bunch of devices are only location enabled, meaning they collect location details but are devoid of dedicated and super-precise GPS systems.
As GPS devices become more practical and commercially available, we would see their integration in wearable devices as well. When that happens, a hiker could complete PCT or a high-altitude expedition using their smartwatch or a pocket-friendly GPS device without any human assistance.
Payments Using Wearables
The setting up of a hybrid store by Amazon called Amazon Go showed what benefits well thought implementation of IoT can bring to retailers. With customers having to simply pick up their products and leave, the store was a revolution. It redefined contactless payments.
Considering the current growth rate of the contactless payments industry, we could safely predict that payments will be integrated into wearable devices as well. Through either IoT or concepts like NFC (Near Field Communication), customers can pay on the go by either tapping their wearable device onto a terminal or just by swiping their screens.
Beacon Technology
The beacon technology is a blessing to retailers to push highly-niche information and insights to customers and potential visitors who are in their store’s vicinity. Powered by Bluetooth technology, beacons are tiny transmitters with the ability to connect with nearby devices. Once a connection is established, relevant information or updates can be pushed to the device as push notifications.
However, it doesn’t stop there when it comes to the integration of beacon technology with wearable devices. When wearable devices are enabled with beacons, healthcare can be further optimized by alerting nearby doctors or clinics the condition of a patient (the wearer) and broadcasting requests to blood donors nearby. This could be a gamechanger to the way we perceive emergency and critical situations.
Wrapping Up
So, what do you think? Exciting times lie ahead for wearable app development services and companies, right? With so much happening across tech dimensions, it would be really interesting to see the overlapping of two or more concepts to ultimately offer convenience to customers. What else do you think are propelling wearable technology to the future?