The IoT Gadget No One Asked For (But You’ll Want Anyway)

Hello readers,

Welcome to the IoT For All newsletter! This week we’re talking about wireless sticky notes, deploying multi-network IoT connectivity at scale, turning connectivity from a cost to a monetized service, and more!

The Internet of Everything, and I mean everything

Sometimes the best IoT ideas aren’t large-scale and flashy, like building a smart factory or building a network in space. A recent study from Eastern Michigan University describes an IoT application that’s equal parts smart, simple, and silly: a connected sticky note.

The researchers combined a compact hub, a smartphone app, and e-paper displays to create a ultra-low power “smart sticky note” that blends the humble familiarity of a door note with the advantages of modern IoT. Instead of scribbling “Do not disturb” on paper, you send a message from your phone, and it pops up on an e-paper display stuck to the door.

By leveraging lightweight IoT protocols like MQTT and long-range communication standards like LoRa that minimize network traffic, alongside low-power e-paper displays that only consume energy on refresh, the researchers were able to keep energy demands minimal while still ensuring reliable message delivery.

Of course the real challenge was balancing simplicity with resilience: the device had to work without constant charging, update quickly enough to feel natural, and be intuitive for users who are more comfortable with paper than apps. At the end of the experiment, the designers were able to arrive at a device with a battery life of more than six months and a simple smartphone app for pushing changes with the aid of a Wi-Fi-connected hub and MQTT server.

The obvious question is: why not just use a real sticky note? There are, in fact, some pretty good advantages! Smart notes can be updated remotely; you can put up the sign after you already left. They also create consistency: messages are clear, legible, and can even be logged or linked to other systems. In places like hotels, restaurants, warehouses, or hospitals, this could mean fewer miscommunications, and signage that adapts in real time, and a paper trail without the paper.

Practically, the simplicity of dirt cheap paper notes that never need charging and will work perfectly without power or internet will almost always outclass the theoretical benefits of a “smarter” approach. But sometimes, once an IoT approach burrows its way into your brain, the only way to get it gone is to make it happen.

📖 Top Articles

Deploying Multi-Network IoT Connectivity at Scale: A Practical Guide to SGP.32, Multi-IMSI & Satellite NTN

Traditional SIM models, locked to a single network, fall short in today’s IoT environments, where devices require adaptable, resilient connectivity. Whether deployed regionally or globally, static connectivity creates risks: no network redundancy, limited coverage, and added complexity when needs evolve. 

To meet these challenges, modern solutions like multi-IMSI SIMs, SGP.32, and Satellite NTN offer greater control, flexibility, and scale. This paper provides a practical guide to evaluating and deploying these technologies, grounded in real-world implementation insights. 

Read more

• From Raw Data to Real-Time Insights: Unleashing the Potential of IoT Analytics

• Is Your Data Architecture Ready for AI? Find Out Now

• How eSIM Technology Simplifies IoT Device Management

• 5 IoT Lessons Learned Across Industries: From Factories to Farms

• Rethink Cellular Integration: The Factory Floor is the New Edge for Connectivity

🔥 Rapid Fire

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• Siemens software powers FIA's digital transformation in motorsport

• New partnerships form to deploy digital energy twins in data centers

• AI and IoT are enhancing traceability in agrifood processing

• KPN partners with OQ for satellite-backed 5G IoT

• Can AI-driven IoT unlock a long-term growth path for Comcast?

🎙️ The IoT For All Podcast

In this episode of the IoT For All Podcast, Harald Fuchs, CEO of Freeeway, and Mark van den Berg from KPN IoT join Ryan Chacon to discuss how rising data consumption in connected cars is reshaping the automotive industry and turning connectivity from a cost to a monetized service. The conversation covers IoT monetization strategies, connected cars as entertainment hubs, autonomous driving, digital services within vehicles, including payment integrations, connected cars in China, and evolving business models in automotive IoT.

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