According to a report from the research agency IDC, the Internet of Things is set to be worth $7.1 trillion in five years time, more than twice the size of the smartphone, PC, tablet, connected car and wearable market put together. Which means big companies like Amazon are already harnessing the power of the IoT in their new product development.
Amazon is branching into the home automation market with the launch of its hardware and a cloud-based service, both of which support web-enabled devices around the home. The Dash button is a physical device which was introduced last week across America, on a purely invite-only basis, and if successful, will become readily and globally available in time.
Dash Button
The plastic device is a little bit bigger than a human thumb and it connects to Wi-Fi; when the Dash is pressed, it allows the user to automatically order items from Amazon Prime. At present, Amazon has partnered with a mere 18 companies, including big names such as Gillette, Olay, Huggies and Bounty. Each Dash button acts a one-click entry point to these branded items on Amazon, and the button can be “tweaked via the main Amazon app to order products, but only from that one brand. Shoppers can choose whether pressing the Gillette Dash button would order another 5-pack of shaving cartridges or a 10-pack, for instance.”
The aim is that Dash buttons will be scattered around the home, so that if you are running low on an item or run out, then a simple press of the button will enable you to re-order exactly what you want in less time than it takes to actually access the item’s website.
Amazon’s interest in this is pretty clear: the organisation makes for loyal customers who have the ease and comfort of ordering items from one place. As for the shoppers, could anything be easier? Or indeed, lazier.
DRS
The second launch is a new cloud-based service is called the Dash Replenishment Service (DRS), which is expected to be introduced, again in the US, by autumn. According to a report on the Mashable website “If the Dash button is a physical, one-click access point to Amazon, think of DRS as a budding ecosystem of third-party devices, all running software that connect back to the tech giant.”
So far, Amazon has linked with four companies: although this is expected to change drastically once the concept is launched. Initially, Brita water is one of the inaugural four and its filters will feature a sensor that measures usage, and when necessary, will connect to Amazon and reorder water filters. The other companies include sellers of household products and again, when the product is running low, the sensor will inform Amazon and reorder.
The Internet of Things is set to revolutionise smart homes and Amazon is only one of many companies that are leaping eagerly into a new market. Shopping from home may become even easier in the coming years and in order to make sure your home is up to date and geared up with everything needed to ensure it can handle smooth transition to innovations, check out the home automation products that we offer.