Experimenting with the Internet of Things

As I sat down to write this post I noticed it was warm in the room. Not thinking twice, I loaded up my Nest iPhone app and promptly lowered the temperature for the area. That is, I took advantage of the Internet of Things — the idea that everyday objects become connected to the internet and can communicate in new ways.

Here’s my current list of internet-enabled objects that were traditionally isolated:

• Tesla Model S – From my iPhone I can control the car’s A/C, sunroof, charging, door locks, see how many miles of range is left on the battery, and see the GPS location overlaid on a map.
• Nest – The thermostat is tracking our usage patterns to learn how we live so that it can optimize for our lifestyle while saving money on our energy bills. As a bonus, if we go on a trip and set the temperature to 80 while we’re gone, from my iPhone I can lower the temperature a few hours before we return so we get home to a cooler house.
• Withings Scale – Every time I step on the scale it knows it’s me and records my weight, pulse, and other factors in the cloud so that I can see my progress on my iPhone anytime, anywhere.
• Dropcam – With this internet-only video camera, I can have a two-way conversation with a person on my front porch via my iPhone anywhere in the world. If the baby is sleeping, I can go do yard work and keep an eye on him from anywhere around my house.

The Internet of Things is going to have a profound impact on how we work and live. I’m excited to keep trying them out and experimenting.

What else? What are your thoughts on the Internet of Things and what other objects do you have that are internet-enabled?