A widely cited prediction holds that by 2020 “upwards of 50 billion devices” will be connected to the Internet. And that number of connected devices, massive as it may be, will be dwarfed by a far larger number of connected sensors.  At a modest 20 sensors per device, the connections tally reaches one trillion.

This is the Internet of Things (IoT). Its billions of devices and a trillion (give or take) connected sensors promise users better experiences with their products because the IoT can supply the data to quickly resolve unforeseen problems. This is half of the high-quality user experience for any new product and its services. The other half is the innovation designed and manufactured into that product.

 …