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Internet of Things (IoT)

The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to everyday physical devices—appliances, locks, thermostats, cameras, and more—that have been connected to the internet to add functionality and remote control capabilities. Unlike traditional computers, these are objects that historically operated without network connectivity.

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About this video

The Internet of Things (IoT) is the broad term for physical, everyday objects that have been connected to the internet to gain functionality they were not originally designed to have. These are not traditional computing devices—laptops, desktops, and smartphones are excluded from the definition because network connectivity has always been a core feature of those products. IoT refers specifically to appliances, fixtures, and household items that operated independently for decades and are now being brought online. Common examples span nearly every area of a home or building. Smart refrigerators, microwaves, washers, and dryers represent connected appliances. Smart plugs, light switches, and thermostats allow remote control of power and climate. Door locks, video doorbells, and security cameras extend physical security monitoring to any internet-connected device. Streaming sticks, smart TVs, and voice-assistant speakers round out the consumer IoT landscape. Each of these devices communicates over a local network and, in most cases, the broader internet, enabling users to monitor status, issue commands, and automate behavior from anywhere. As the number of IoT devices in homes and enterprises continues to grow, understanding what qualifies as an IoT device—and what does not—is foundational knowledge for anyone working in networking, systems administration, or cybersecurity. Every connected device represents a potential entry point into a network, making IoT awareness essential for maintaining a sound security posture.

What you'll learn

Define the Internet of Things (IoT) and distinguish IoT devices from traditional networked computing devices
Identify common examples of IoT devices used in residential environments

What's covered

Internet of Things (IoT)

What Is IoT
- Non-traditional devices connected
- Adds network functionality
- Traditional computers excluded
Home Appliances
- Refrigerator
- Microwave with Alexa
- Smart thermostat
Security & Access
- Smart deadbolt lock
- Ring doorbell camera
- Garage door monitor
- Home video cameras
Entertainment Devices
- Smart TVs
- Streaming sticks
- Echo Dot speakers
Smart Control Devices
- Smart wall outlet
- Phone and laptop control

Key terms

Internet of Things: A network of physical devices embedded with sensors and software that connect and exchange data over the internet.
Endpoint: Any device that connects to a network, including computers, smartphones, tablets, and IoT devices.
Traditional Networked Computing Device: A conventional computing device such as a laptop or desktop computer that has historically been designed with internet connectivity as a core function, distinguishing it from IoT devices.

Topics

Internet Of Things Iot Devices Smart Home Embedded Systems Networking

Transcript

What the internet of things is

So what do my refrigerator, my microwave, my laptop all have in common? They all connect to the internet. This is what we call the internet of things. My everyday things that didn't used to connect to the internet now connect to the internet.

All of our devices around our home typically haven't been connected to the internet. So things like our washers and dryers, our refrigerators, our light bulbs, different switches have all been not interconnected with the network. And now that we are connecting these to add functionality to all of these devices, now we're calling this the internet of things. We have things and we're connecting them to the internet.

A typical computer has been connected for a long time, and we now buy computers because of connectivity for a large part. Those don't really count necessarily for the internet of things. We're talking about appliances and things that haven't traditionally been networked and connected to the internet that now are. That is the internet of things.

Examples

So what are some examples of the internet of things? I have my laptop here, and that's not actually an example of an internet of things, because it's a traditional computer, and so we would typically think that that's connected to the internet.

My refrigerator would be an example, and I'm not going to haul it up here as an example, but I do have a microwave here that actually does interconnect with my network and can connect to the internet. It's Alexa enabled, so it will actually respond to me and will have certain features that Alexa will give me.

What else is an internet of things? Here I have an outlet that I can plug into the wall and control with my laptop or with my phone. So that's been really handy; I've got lots of these throughout the house.

Another thing is my garage door. I can link my garage door to the whole system, so I can open and close it and monitor what's happening, if it's open and closed, which is really handy when I drive away and think, oh, did I close the garage door? Then I can get on my phone and find out if I did or not.

Here's a lock to the front door. This is a deadbolt lock to the front door so I can lock the front door, and I have that connected to my network. I also have a Ring doorbell which has a camera on it, and when you click on this, it will ring. And then I actually have a little speaker for it, so I can plug this anywhere in the home, so I have that available.

I have my TVs, so these two TVs back here are all connected to my network. That's an example of it. I also have a couple of these Fire Sticks, and I've got a Chrome streaming device, so I've got a bunch of these devices that connect to my TVs. I have about seven TVs in my home that are all interconnected with my network.

And then I have a video camera, so I have monitoring around my house, so I can monitor things and make sure that everything's okay.

I also have a bunch of these Echo Dots, and they're spread out; I have 10 of these throughout my home. These are all speakers throughout my home, so I can tell Alexa to play some music and she'll play music throughout the house.

And then I also have my thermostat here, so I can actually control the temperature of my home using my ecobee thermostat. So these would all be examples of the internet of things.

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