The general assumption has been that Wi-Fi would be the service of choice for machine-to-machine (M2M) and Internet of Things (IoT). But AT&T is seeing a different picture emerging according to this FierceWireless piece.
That is, a growing number of enterprises are opting to choose cellular over Wi-Fi as their go-to service of choice. More specifically, AT&T reports there’s a definite shift for customers that started off with Wi-Fi only devices to cellular only. The reasons they say depend on the application, but one company that makes intelligent medical carts found that hospital Wi-Fi was losing connectivity as the carts were moving around. And in an IoT or M2M world, that kind of interruption simply won’t do.
Let’s not forget however, that while cellular is increasingly being considered as the go-to service for uninterrupted service in the IoT space, facilities can still face coverage challenges on occasion. When it comes to mission critical applications, Cel-Fi can play a part in making sure that coverage remains consistent, whatever journey a device or machine takes.
What’s been your experience with Wi-Fi devices for tracking?
By the Cel-Fi Team