The Internet of Things, which seems like a science fiction name, has actually been developing for many years. It's just that different people have different definitions of "things", so it has been difficult to have a consistent expression of the application of the Internet of Thi

Internet of Things, which seems like a science fiction name, has actually been developed for many years.

It’s just that different people have different definitions of “things”. Therefore, it has been difficult to have a consistent expression of the application of the Internet of Things and the market size of the Internet of Things. This may make people’s understanding of the Internet of Things relatively vague. Therefore, it is indeed difficult to accurately explain the application of the Internet of Things, and there are certain differences.

Therefore, Xiaoyi thinks it is better to talk about the origin of cheap and easy-to-use smart products. Maybe everyone can understand the impact of the development of the Internet of Things on our lives.

Do you know where IoT products first became popular? Maybe you never thought that the answer would be: a crowdfunding website. The "Little K Smart Socket" in 2014 raised 1.79 million yuan through crowdfunding websites and developed a Wifi socket that can be remotely controlled by a mobile phone. The second generation of "Little K" directly broke the domestic crowdfunding record with 5.39 million yuan. The following year, the third generation of "Little K" once again became the most watched smart product of the year with 21 million yuan in crowdfunding and over 350,000 people participating.

Although looking back now, the "Little K" smart Wifi socket does not seem to be that smart, except that it can be remotely controlled by a mobile phone to turn on and off electrical appliances. However, at a price of 50 yuan, it can be regarded as the cheapest IoT product on the market. .

Before this, the cost of a chip with Wifi function was 100-200 yuan. After 2012, giants such as Liankefa, , Qualcomm, , and IT successively launched IoT wifi chips, and the cost plummeted to 30-60 yuan. Although it only uses simple Internet of Things technology, it has few functions and low performance, the advantage is that the cost is greatly reduced.

However, what people don’t expect is that when the giants are competing for the new Wi-Fi product market, it is a small Chinese company that breaks the order of market competition.

In 2014, when major international manufacturers were excited about lowering the price of WiFi to 30 to 50 yuan, a Chinese technology company called Espressif actually developed a chip called 8266, which directly lowered the price to less than 10 yuan. The ultimate cost-effectiveness has made 8266 widely recognized around the world. Later, Xiaomi's home appliances that required Sifi control were indispensable without the blessing of Espressif chips. As consumers, we have also enjoyed the convenience brought by technology.

It’s hard to imagine how long it would have taken us to enter the cost-effective smart era without the development of IoT technology. Of course, there are actually more applications for the development of Internet of Things technology . Due to space issues, we will continue to talk next time.