I recently got approached to help build an IOT related business.
Some of the questions that come up for me are what happens to all these Lithium coin cell batteries, the PCB boards and chips as all these $5 devices die and are discarded? We already hear sad stories about where cell phones and other electronics go to die. It seems like these devices will be cheaper and thus the population of the devices will outstrip cell phones and other electronics by orders of magnitude. As much as we can worry about “potential” security and misuse issues there is a clear need for stewardship of all these devices that will be pumped out en masse into our world. I don't think RoHS[1] was developed with this level of scale in mind and density of devices.
Often I imagine being Geordi La Forge[2] with electromagnetic vision and how all these devices will be cramming our lives with more electromagnetic noise. It's not clear to me we understand the effects of this on everything from health to un-intended side effects to other technology.
I’m not saying I won’t do something in IOT, I’m saying we should all be thinking more about the overall effects of these types of technology as they scale.
IMHO nothing will stop the development and deployment of IOT devices. The smartphone is a perfect example, if people find usefulness in a technology it’s adoption is almost guaranteed.
Perhaps we need an open dialog on IOT best practices and how each of us can contribute to some level of thoughtfulness around these technologies as they develop in our world.
I'm not worried about the EM or the disposal costs both environmental and commercial, but about the incredible amount of distractions and maintenance these devices take.
There was a time back a few years ago, before the "big Internet" companies where technology was a utility, not an activity. Becoming an activity is dangerous and the more little distractions these devices cause, the further the problem with escalate.
Comments
I recently got approached to help build an IOT related business.
Some of the questions that come up for me are what happens to all these Lithium coin cell batteries, the PCB boards and chips as all these $5 devices die and are discarded? We already hear sad stories about where cell phones and other electronics go to die. It seems like these devices will be cheaper and thus the population of the devices will outstrip cell phones and other electronics by orders of magnitude. As much as we can worry about “potential” security and misuse issues there is a clear need for stewardship of all these devices that will be pumped out en masse into our world. I don't think RoHS[1] was developed with this level of scale in mind and density of devices.
Often I imagine being Geordi La Forge[2] with electromagnetic vision and how all these devices will be cramming our lives with more electromagnetic noise. It's not clear to me we understand the effects of this on everything from health to un-intended side effects to other technology.
I’m not saying I won’t do something in IOT, I’m saying we should all be thinking more about the overall effects of these types of technology as they scale.
IMHO nothing will stop the development and deployment of IOT devices. The smartphone is a perfect example, if people find usefulness in a technology it’s adoption is almost guaranteed.
Perhaps we need an open dialog on IOT best practices and how each of us can contribute to some level of thoughtfulness around these technologies as they develop in our world.
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restriction_of_Hazardous_Substa... [2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geordi_La_Forge#Appearances
I'm not worried about the EM or the disposal costs both environmental and commercial, but about the incredible amount of distractions and maintenance these devices take.
There was a time back a few years ago, before the "big Internet" companies where technology was a utility, not an activity. Becoming an activity is dangerous and the more little distractions these devices cause, the further the problem with escalate.
It all reminds me of the following scene from The Fifth Element: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnzzWGcdMqY (technology cannot help him).
I think the more responsible IoT companies will offer free device recycling.