Andrew Tarantola: The Internet of Things will be more of the same in 2016. Everything still needs an app.

Despite analyst expectations that the so-called Internet of Things will generate as much as $1.2 billion in 2016, the Internet of Things appears to be continuing its same shark-jumping trajectory that we saw at last year's CES. Sure, there have been some rather unique and innovative IoT inventions over the past year, but most manufacturers seem to be content simply slapping a Wi-Fi or or Bluetooth radio onto existing products and calling it a mobile revolution. When it comes to crafting a connected home, IoT remains mired in smart light bulbs, net-connected cameras and wireless speakers. You know, the same sorts of bland, iterative use cases we've been seeing since the term was first coined.