19 Ways the Internet of Things Changes Everything

By 2025, the Internet of Things (IoT) will be everywhere, according to a 2014 Pew Research Center report. You'll be hard-pressed to find a device that's not connected to the Web in some way.

At its f8 developer conference last week, Facebook announced its push into the IoT with software development kits for its Parse mobile app development platform. So just as social milestones and interactions are now saved in the cloud with Facebook, so will the monitoring of home alarms, security cameras, smart locks, thermostats, and the like.

The possibilities are endless with the IoT: from health trackers and cars to home audio systems and smoke alarms. Combine that with an IFTTT (If This Then That) command and you have the recipe for a truly Web-connected life.

While privacy advocates have concerns about the IoT, about 83 percent of the 1,606 experts surveyed by Pew said that the trend will be beneficial in the long run. A previous Pew report that predicted digital life in 2025 had experts speculating that the Internet will become "like electricity" in that it will be a nearly invisible undercurrent to all lives.

Part of what will make the IoT so seamless and omnipresent will be how it can slip unnoticed into daily life. Graphene, for example, is a one-atom-thick sheet of pure carbon that could serve as an efficient conductor of heat and electricity and will likely feature prominently in the IoT. Graphene is already being looked at as a way to construct a very small, exceptionally flexible ultracapacitor that can be woven into clothing for the ultimate in wearables.

Where can you find the IoT now and where is it going? Check out the slideshow to find out.

1. Babies

The Mimo kimono makes for a quantified baby. It keeps track of a baby’s sleep pattern, breathing, and even whether they’ve turned over. Mimo provides real-time updates to Android and iOS apps. If that's not enough monitoring, then parents can pop in a Pacif-i or apply a TempTraq adhesive bandage by Blue Spark Technologies to monitor baby's temperature.

2. Dogs

Some people get a dog to help spur them into a more active lifestyle. But a pet can just as easily pick up the lazier habits of its owners. Whistle attaches to a dog’s collar to make sure that dogs (and, ultimately, their owners) are keeping in shape. If they're watching their weight (or have an owner who's not home at meal time) then they can use Petnet, a connected food dispenser that portions out meals and can be controlled by an app (human required).

3. Coffee

Free Wi-Fi is as big a draw as the coffee at Starbucks. And now even the coffee itself is online via Clover machines. The high-end coffeemakers connect to the Internet to take stock of customer preferences, update programmed recipes, and track the performance of the machines themselves. If you're your own barista, then the Mr. Coffee Smart Optimal Brew Coffee Maker with WeMo is the way to go. Pick up your phone in bed and brew coffee before your feet are even in your slippers.

4. Air Conditioners

There’s nothing like stepping inside from the stifling heat of the outdoors into…the stifling heat of the indoors. The Aros air conditioner is app-controlled so it avoids that issue. It even learns your habits and keeps track of you with GPS to know when you’re going to want to cool things off.

5. Toilets

Japanese toilets are known for their superior attention to all things posterior. But Toto has a line of toilets that get even more personal. They analyze waste products and share the results with users and their doctors through a smartphone app.

6. Thermometers

Home is where the heat is. And sometimes things get heated when families fight over the temperature. The Nest Learning Thermostat keeps track of comings and goings and temperature preferences to keep things on an even keel. While the Nest made itself at home first, there are now lots of smart thermostats, from the Honeywell Lyric to the Ecobee3.

7. Smoke Alarms

Nest also makes the Nest Protect, a smoke alarm that’s smart enough to know when to pipe up and when to quiet down—and alerts you to smoke or carbon monoxide even when you’re not home. It also works with the Nest Learning Thermostat to turn off a gas furnace if it detects carbon monoxide.

8. Lights

The light bulb is the symbol of ideas, so it’s not much of a surprise that Philips found inspiration in one. The Hue is an app-controlled light bulb that lets you adjust the color and intensity of the light it emits. It can even be set to change in tune with music. For those who want to control the lights in their home while they're away, there's the Belkin WeMo Light Switch. Any lights connected to the switch can be set to a schedule or controlled via a smartphone app from anywhere.

9. Shoppers

Shoppers use their smartphones for all sorts of things while they’re in stores: showrooming and researching products among them. With Apple’s iBeacon technology, their phones reach out to them. Duane Reade last year put iBeacon in place in 10 of its stores, using it to send discount offers to shoppers and show them product reviews for items they browse. McDonald's added iBeacons and found they've beefed up sales.

10. Outlets

Plum plugs into the IoT, literally. The smart plugs and outlets control appliances and lights in a home from anywhere. They also measure electricity usage.

11. Home Audio

The Sonos Playbar streams music from major services and your devices fairly seamlessly, providing control through its Controller app. Things might get amplified in the home-audio space since Nest, which is headed by the father of the iPod Tony Fadell, is looking to get into it.

12. Toys

Toddlers are too young for a phone, but they can still get messages from loved ones delivered to them directly with Toymail. The Wi-Fi-enabled, animal-shaped mailboxes let kids get and send messages to smartphones.

13. Scales

Far more than a scale, the Withings Smart Body Analyzer does calculate weight, BMI, and fat mass, but it also provides an overall picture of health: taking blood pressure, measuring air quality, and connecting to an app that coaches users to a healthier lifestyle with advice, tracking, and partnering with other fitness devices and apps.

14. Sprinklers

Clouds bring rain that nourishes living things. Now the Internet cloud can do the same. Droplet is a smart sprinkler that computes how much water is needed based on the types of plants, temperature, and data from U.S. soil samples.

15. Cars

The Tesla Model S isn't just an electric car, it's a connected one. The accompanying app can be used to control the interior temperature, start or stop charging, locate the car, and lock and unlock it. And while other car computers can indeed have their software updated, the Model S can get that update over the air.

16. Patients

AirStrip One lets physicians monitor hospital patients’ vital signs and electronic medical records from their phones and other devices. For more, check out 5 Apps That Bring the Doctor to You.

17. Home Security

Dropcam provides peace of mind for homeowners with a home-security camera that can be controlled by an app that lets them zoom in on areas, livestream, and even communicate via a two-way speaker system. Last year, it added Tabs, or small movement sensors, to keep tabs on individual items.

18. Toothbrushes

The benefits of the Beam toothbrush can be seen in smiles and in data. It measures when and for how long you last brushed and shares it with a smartphone app to keep track.

19. Ovens

The Dacor Discovery IQ brings a new level of intelligence to cooking. An app controls oven heat, from pre-heating to monitoring temperature, to keeping fully cooked items warm.