A new report has revealed that the number of connected things used by smart cities will grow to 1.6 billion in 2016, a 39% increase compared to this year’s figure.
The growth will be driven by commercial security cameras and webcams as well as indoor LEDs, representing 24% of the Internet of Things (IoT) market for smart cities.
The report by Gartner found that even though commercial buildings will be the highest user of IoT until 2017, smart homes will take the lead with just more than 1 billion connected things in 2018.
Gartner said that the growth will be fuelled by smart TVs, smart set-top boxes, smart bulbs and various home automation tools such as smart thermostats, home security systems and kitchen appliances.
Smart homes are expected to represent 21% of total IoT use in smart cities in 2016, recording the highest increase in the next five years.
Gartner research vice president Bettina Tratz-Ryan said: "Device and wireless standards will be embedded in more devices.
"Homes will move from being interconnected to information- and smart-enabled — an integrated services environment that will provide value to the home and the individual ambience."
