All signs point in the same direction: Connected devices are going to have a big year in 2014.
The growth of available connected devices – from wearables to appliances to other everyday objects – was a major theme at CES 2014. According to Forbes, analysts are predicting that connected devices worldwide could top 50 billion in the next ten years.
This year alone, IHS predicts that more than six billion new internet-enabled devices will enter homes – the biggest increase since connected devices started becoming popular. By the end of 2017, that number will reach nearly 20 billion.
Worldwide production of connected equipment will amount to 6.18 billion units this year, up a solid 6 percent from 5.82 billion in 2013. This will be the largest increase for the market in four years, surpassed only by the 10 percent hike in production during 2010, a year after the global economic recession ended.
Production growth rates will then slow in the next few years, even though total units produced will continue to rise in absolute numbers. Between 2015 and 2017, an estimated 19.42 billion new devices will flood the planet, as shown in the attached figure.
IHS identifies the big connected players as devices already familiar on the market – mobile devices, gaming consoles, smart TVs, even laptops. If new connected devices emerge and catch on – say, smart appliances, fitness trackers, smart watches or smart cars, that number will surely spike even higher.
App makers are going to need to expand their testing efforts if they want to maintain a consistent level of quality as users expand to an every growing array of connected devices.