Whether it's the new Apple watch, television adverts for Samsungs' wearable technology or CNN showing us immersive telepresence opportunities brought to life by cutting edge technology - everyone is talking about the Internet of Things (IoT) and Augmented Reality (AR).

The two are being combined more and more. Sometimes they're referred to as 'Mixed Reality' together too.

It can be hard to keep up with what all this means exactly, but that's why you have us! On this page, we'll cover 5 things you need to know about upcoming trends in IoT & AR so that you understand just how cool these technologies are.

What Is The Internet of Things?



What is the Internet of Things? The IoT is a concept where internet connectivity controls and interacts with everyday objects.

These could be simple things like a thermostat at home or something more complex such as an implant that helps monitor, regulate and release hormones into your body for better blood sugar regulation.

In either case, you have just one controlling device that communicates through Wi-Fi or Bluetooth to talk directly with the devices themselves, often over the cloud. In this way, there's a lot of scope for incredible human-machine interaction in all sorts of fields with NetSuite consulting services.

Imagine being able to control everything from your alarm clock waking you up in the morning, right through to how bright your desk lamp should be - simply by talking, tapping on a bracelet or even just thinking about it.

What Is Augmented Reality?




What is Augmented Reality? That's a bit harder to explain, so we'll first look at what virtual reality is. VR replaces your environment entirely by creating a simulated world for you to view and interact with on some level.

The most common form right now is probably the Oculus Rift, a Virtual Reality Headset designed for gaming that completely replaces your vision of the outside world with an immersive simulation of another place.

It can do this using tricks like having multiple screens inside the headset each showing a slightly different perspective on the scene as well as 3D audio systems that make sounds 'move' around as if they were really happening in the space around you.

How Are IoT & AR Being Used In Hospitals?

We see that doctors are increasingly using smartphone assistants, which can help guide them on their rounds or even be used directly by patients at home.

AR meanwhile, is being used in specific places for more targeted medical care - through methods like image-guided surgery (where a surgeon is assisted through access to visual information about their patient's bodies).

What Are The Benefits of IoT & AR?

What are the benefits of IoT & AR? Widely hailed as one of the most important tech-related developments of this century, there are many benefits to getting involved with IoT and AR right now.

The first benefit is that it allows us to be more connected. In the end, we may all have medical implants that communicate with our doctors directly to track and regulate our health.

Another benefit is the incredible amount of data we'll be able to collect once all devices are interconnected (or 'smart'). This will allow us to understand diseases better, test new medicines, and improve care. But it's also important to note that this sort of data won't just be useful for medicine: there's a huge amount of scope for IoT & AR technology in education and business too.

How Can You Get Involved With IoT & AR?

How can you get involved with IoT & AR? Right now, we're experiencing something which many compare to the early days of PCs or even mobile phones - where the technology is just out there, and it's up to you as a developer or entrepreneur to figure out how it can solve your business problems.

In the same way that many developers figured out how mobile phones could offer them a great deal by writing games for them, we're seeing a similar development in IoT & AR today. That said, much of this stuff is still pretty cutting-edge, which means it is going to be hard to come up with solutions from scratch.

That's why it's important to seek out companies that have already done the leg work and are working with these technologies. You can then license their products instead of having to build things from nothing yourself.

The good news here is twofold: firstly, there are several companies already offering IoT & AR solutions, and secondly, these sorts of platforms tend to be very scalable and flexible, so you'll find it easy to add new features and functionalities in the future.

Technology is always changing, and hospitals need to keep up. In this post, you'll learn about the future of hospital IoT and AR. Are you ready?