The top IoT platforms have lately offered the benefits of running smoother operations in organisations of all sizes. But this does not mean that one can use any random platform for the purpose. On the contrary, it is essential to choose the right one depending upon several factors.
How to Choose the best IoT Platform?
Among the top IoT development tools, the factors determine the best platform for you.
Features:
To choose the right platform, it is essential to check out the features of the platforms well. First, you should check that the platform’s features are solving the requirements of your organisation. Then, go through the features to know the benefits you can avail of after having the platform.
Ease of Use:
Another important factor that you should surely check out is the ease of use of the platform that you are choosing. The interface has to be such that the users can easily understand it. Also, several platforms come up with tutorials that are extremely helpful for the users to understand the features and the working of the platform.
Support:
Even when you choose a platform that is easy to use, it is quite essential to check whether the platform you are selecting offers good support to the users. Also, ensure that the platform you are about to get has a proper support team to help you when you require their help in working on the platform.
Pricing:
No doubt, whether you have a big or a small organisation, it is very important to check the platform’s pricing. There are several platforms with similar features. So, it is important to compare the platforms to get the one that matches the budget of your firm.
Top IoT Platforms
While there are so many names to go for, some well-known options are not just popular because of their brand names but also are highly efficient in terms of their features. Some such names to surely talk about are Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure, Amazon AWS, and Particle.
Google Cloud:
Google is a globally known name that can be easily relied upon. Hence, Google Cloud has become one of the most popular options among the best IoT platforms. Google has also been considered efficient for the organisations due to its 3-layered infrastructure. It comes loaded with several features too:
- Compatible with diverse devices
- Insights available in real-time for better management
- Artificial Intelligence at its best
- Location Intelligence
- Affordable pricing
While Google is already a reliable name, these cloud service features make it even more beneficial for the firms. It happens to bring clarity in the operations that help accelerate any process going on.
Microsoft Azure:
Similar to Google, another globally recognized name is that Microsoft.
Microsoft Azure IoT is an open-source platform for cloud services. By now, this platform has become quite recognised worldwide as it is compatible with diverse sectors and industries such as transportation, manufacturing, or similar others. Similar to Google, Microsoft also comes loaded with many features.
- Compatible in diverse devices and upon registration, it recognises different devices through unique codes.
- Update of data is in real-time and that also from any of the registered devices.
- The dashboard of the platform displays real-time analytics so that the management can make efficient decisions.
- Regular data updates also lead to regular updates in the insights,whichhelps take prompt actions.
- It tracks all the registered devices through the feature of remote monitoring.
Thus, Microsoft is extremely beneficial in offering some of the best features for data management and device management with connectivity.
Amazon AWS:
After the globally known names Google and Microsoft, Amazon AWS is another widely recognised IoT platform that makes operations smoother. The best part of this platform is that it is compatible with all devices. Besides connecting different devices and offering a smoother communication of data, Amazon AWS houses a huge list of features that is even bigger than the above two platforms.
- AWS offers support for HTTP, MQTT, and lightweight protocol.
- It can manage and process a huge list of messages and data
- The platform can connect to the registered devices even when the user is unavailable.
- They are known for extreme security for all the registered devices.
- Users can gain access to other various products from Amazon through this platform, such as Amazon Kinesis, Lambda, and Amazon QuickSight.
The main task of Amazon is all about connectivity, and it offers an amazing list of beneficial features related to it.
Particle:
When you are looking for a reliable platform that can offer you several IoT tools in a single place, then Particle can be an amazing option to go for. Some products of connectivity that Particle offers to its users are device cloud, device OS, and Wi-Fi. In addition, some other features of the platform are explained here.
- Reliable and stable infrastructure
- Easy to use so that the organisations do not have to spend on the employees’ training to work on Particle.
- A firewall protects data in the cloud.
- Users can integrate different other tools or systems with Particle with ease.
Apart from the major IoT development tools, there are many more options to go for, and some of them are:
- Salesforce IoT Cloud
- Samsung Artik Cloud
- IBM Watson IoT
- IRI Voracity
- Oracle IoT
- ThingWorx
Even when you are opting to select one of the most popular IoT platforms, you have to be sure that the platform can match your expectations and your requirements in the firm. Hence, one of the best ideas is to compare some of the best options and then get the right one for you.
Comparison between the Top IoT Platforms
Here is the comparison of the best IoT development tools discussed above.
Usage:
It is essential to check the usability of the platforms to select the right option for you.
Google Cloud – It helps in the management and organisation of data and files correctly.
Microsoft Azure – Microsoft is highly efficient in connectivity purposes through cellular or other ways.
Amazon AWS – It focuses on cloud services to connect different devices for better clarity in operations.
Particle – Particle is almost similar to Microsoft as it also offers connectivity-related services.
Solutions:
Different platforms offer different solutions, and it is a great idea to get a comparison done to select the best option.
Google Cloud – Google is always known for its super-efficient real-time asset tracking feature of the platforms for smart cities.
Microsoft Azure – Microsoft is extremely helpful in solving connectivity issues through cloud or hardware.
Amazon AWS – The platform supports HTTP, MQTT, and lightweight protocol.
Particle – Particle also offers several connectivity benefits for the organisation.
Pricing:
You need to check the right platform also depending upon the budget that you have got.
Google Cloud – You can avail of the services of Google Cloud for $1758 per month.
Microsoft Azure – The services of Microsoft Azure can be bought on a per device basis. The pricing for the services is $25 per device.
Amazon AWS – Amazon AWS offers a free trial to all its users for 12 months, after which the users can purchase the services at different costs depending upon their requirements.
Particle – The pricing of Particle is based on per-device usage. Also, there are different pricing for different services, such as $25 for Wi-Fi, $49 for cellular, and $15 for mesh.
Convenience:
You need to also check out the convenience of the platforms to use them in the right way.
Google Cloud – Google Cloud is all about having a simplistic dashboard and a simplistic set of features that is easy to use.
Microsoft Azure – The platform of Microsoft Azure is user-friendly, and the features are easy to learn.
Amazon AWS – Amazon AWS comes with an easy-to-sign-up process. Also, the platform comes with a tutorial segment to help you learn the methods easily.
Particle – The platform is quite user-friendly for convenient usage.
Support:
Having proper support from the platform is extremely necessary to help you in different situations.
Google Cloud – Google Cloud comes with excellent community support.
Microsoft Azure –Similar to Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure also comes with community support that is always helpful.
Amazon AWS – Amazon AWS comes with several tutorials that help solve many issues you have.
Particle – The platform Particle also comes with community support for all your help.
There are numerous IoT platforms available today to help you boost your firm’s performance and get fruitful results. But it is also extremely essential to choose the right platform that can be helpful to you according to your requirements. Hence, it becomes extremely necessary to compare the tools and platforms and then choose the best option for you.
