According to Gartner, the evolution from personal computer to personal cloud will drive invisible, sensor-enabled devices driven by applications and services.
Gartner said consumer digital lives have evolved from the PC to a personal cloud-driven world. This is creating a new type of interaction between consumers and their connected services.
The research firm predicts that consumers will use and interact with a multitude of connected to create cognizant ecosystems independent of a platform or operating system.
Gartner research director, Michael Gartenberg, said: "Cognizant computing evolves the connected device and personal cloud service into an activity of seamless and frictionless integration connected to sensor-driven ‘invisible’ devices that are optimized for a particular set of functions."
"This data and information can then be tied to other services across larger ecosystems, platforms and operating systems," Gartenberg said.
Gartner said cognizant computing is not new but it is the natural evolution of a world driven not by devices – but rather collections of applications and services that extend across multiple platforms and exist outside the purview of connected screens, such as phones, tablets, PCs or televisions.
Applications which are aware of action or inaction, create a larger amount of relevant information which can drive behavioural change, the analysts added.
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According to Gartner, invisible and cognizant devices ranging from wristwatches, key fobs, thermostats and shoes can become extraordinarily valuable to the user when they are linked to cloud services.
Gartner research director Jessica Ekholm said one of the defining experiences of cognizant computing is that the devices that drive the experience fall into what we refer to as the ‘invisible space.’
"We define this as the combination of devices and services that unite to form an experience that is below the daily threshold of awareness," Ekholm said.
"In practice, consumers will forget the devices are being carried, worn or used until they need to interact with them for control or to obtain feedback in terms of data or information."
