Developing mobile apps, especially IoT mobile apps, can be very rewarding if you are aware of and prepared for the hurdles ahead. As such, you want an experienced development team before embarking on the journey.
If you are reading this article, there’s a high chance that you’ve already identified the need for your product, a problem that only an IoT app can solve. This is great, but before you start developing the IoT mobile app, it’s very important to understand the possible hurdles that you will face in the IoT app development journey, be it related to hardware, software, operations, or users.
That’s exactly the motive of this article. Here, we will explain some of the common hurdles in IoT mobile app development and how you can sidestep them.
Let’s get onto it!
1. Misunderstanding the Primal Role of Mobile Apps in IoT Products
Let us be clear about one thing right away: the mobile app is the core product for end users utilizing IoT devices. Because this is the means by which they interact and control the IoT device.
That’s why, for end users, the IoT mobile app is the synonym of the main product itself.
This implies that the companies that market IoT products now need to adopt a fundamentally different perspective.
An IoT mobile app should be designed and developed with a holistic and integrated approach. So always consider mobile apps from the outset of the design process through the entire lifetime of an IoT product.
2. Treating Mobile Devices as a Single, unified market
Mobile devices have huge variations based on screen sizes and other factors, like versions of OS, how the IoT mobile apps support future OS upgrades and much more.
Developing mobile apps that can work with all possible devices out there demands a skilled software developer, whether it’s in-house or outsourced. And when the mobile app is for an IoT product, then the software developers will also have to consider factors like wireless networking and cloud support.
3. Negligence of cloud and connectivity issue
An IoT product never exists alone; it always includes three major parts- the product, the cloud, and the app. So, whenever you consider developing an app for IoT products, do not ignore the requirements and issues related to cloud and connectivity.
Nevertheless, every IoT mobile app should be developed to recognize and work well with all the cloud and connectivity prospects.
4. Overloading features onto the mobile app
Every IoT product developer takes pride in developing an IoT product that’s loaded with features and multifunctioning. After all, the features of a product differentiate it and set it apart from the rest of its competitors.
However, in the field of IoT, the mobile app is not the physical product but the focal point of interaction for the users and the product. So, one has to think creatively about the features to be included and left in an IoT mobile app.
This is done basically to avoid forcing users to navigate and scroll through multiple menu layers just to find out what they need.
For instance, an IoT product like an asset tracking device comes with 50+ features, but the end user only cares about 10 features, so only those 10 features should be included in an IoT asset tracking app.
5. Scrimping on the User Experience
Everyone is tech-savvy and uses smartphones for all activities in their daily lives. And due to this, as users, we expect a good user experience.
The IoT mobile app UX should include everything from the app aesthetic, its feedback mechanism, its button design, its responsive nature, and how easy it is to install.
6. Overlooking Security
Everyone looks for security in everything they use. In the case of IoT mobile apps, the data that travels through the product, clouds, and apps should be secure. However, it’s very difficult to provide such security. Because security methods are continuously improving, and it’s not something that you do once and it’s done. IoT security should encompass all aspects of the Internet of Things like IoT products, the IoT Cloud, and IoT mobile apps.
However, at the IoT mobile app level, the security is done by including features like access control, user authentication, wireless security, and encryption of both user data and data collected by the device.
7. Forgetting to Consider Future Unknowns
The work in developing an IoT mobile app never stops; you should be able to integrate new features and capabilities to improve the connected products and their use. In the future, you might have to add features like Bluetooth beacons, voice control, or touch authentication to your IoT mobile app.
8. Don’t Forget the Expenses
IoT application development and deployment can be expensive, requiring expenditures for infrastructure, software, hardware, maintenance, and support. Finding a balance between development costs and market demands, revenue potential, and return on investment is critical to the profitability of Internet of Things projects. This demands careful planning, budgeting, and resource allocation to optimize cost-effectiveness while delivering value to users. Using open-source tools, cloud services, and scalable architectures can help reduce development costs and time-to-market without compromising quality or scalability.
9. Minimize Latency
In Internet of Things applications that require real-time responsiveness, such as industrial monitoring, smart home automation, or healthcare systems, minimizing data transmission delays is crucial. Latency can be impacted by several factors, such as network congestion, device distance, and processing speed. Optimizing network protocols, reducing data processing overhead, and using edge computing or caching techniques can help minimize latency and improve the overall responsiveness of IoT applications.
To conclude,
IoT mobile app development is not very easy, but if you start considering the above-mentioned points, then you can easily sidewalk these hurdles in a very smooth way.
PsiBorg Technologies is a leading IoT services company that provides qualitative IoT app and IoT dashboard development services.
