How Quick Testing and Plug-and-Play Solutions Improve Speed to Market
Written by: Naoki Mikuni
Published: June 17, 2025
When working with customers, we often explore the key factors driving successful IoT projects. A recurring theme in successful developments – particularly in the PoC and design stages – is the importance of rapidly validating hypotheses and swiftly delivering tangible results. By carefully selecting the appropriate devices, connectivity solutions, and cloud services, you can significantly accelerate your IoT journey.
The Value of Early-Stage Testing and Rapid Validation
Rapid validation is key to the success of an IoT project, as it helps identify any potential issues early. Even if initial efforts come up short, identifying these failures early allows developers to make quicker adjustments and, ultimately, build better products. Cycles spent working with ineffective or inappropriate components and processes can draw the development process out, and the longer a project continues, the greater stakeholders’ expectations become, making potential setbacks increasingly costly.
Choosing the Right IoT Device: Balancing Flexibility and Simplicity
Choosing the right IoT device involves finding the optimal balance between ease-of-use and the desired level of customization:
- Cellular Modules: Are highly customizable and offer compact integration, but require significant development effort and expertise. These modules are typically chosen for mass-produced products that require a great deal of customization.
- Development Boards: Equipped with integrated microprocessors, these devices enable direct coding via platforms like Arduino IDE, offering a smaller footprint and moderate flexibility. However, ease-of-use varies based on user familiarity.
- External Cellular Connectivity Devices (e.g., USB Modems, Routers): Provide cellular connectivity to existing host devices (such as Raspberry Pi), offering flexibility on the software side but potentially challenging product integration due to their size.
- Plug-and-play devices (e.g., Soracom LTE-M Button, GPS trackers): Highly accessible and straightforward for immediate use with minimal customization.
For rapid validation and early-stage prototyping, opting for “plug-and-play” devices ensures quicker progress and less complexity. Conversely, if your goal involves producing customized devices at scale, embedding cellular modules can be more suitable. Intermediate options like development boards, USB dongles, or cellular routers can also serve as practical solutions depending on your project’s specific needs.
Leverage Managed Cloud Services
Once you have selected a device, consider serverless architectures or managed cloud services that can further speed up your validation processes. If you want to store data, visualize it, or send notifications, there are various “services” you can utilize that obviate the need to build those features into your server manually.
Soracom’s comprehensive ecosystem provides all the essential building blocks, helping you swiftly demonstrate value and streamline your IoT development. For example, you can quickly store and visualize the telemetry data with Soracom Harvest, or build a simple workflow and notification with Soracom Flux.
Accelerate Hypothesis Validation with Soracom
To rapidly validate your IoT ideas and maximize your project’s chances of success, remember:
- Prioritize quick hypothesis testing and rapid iteration.
- Use readily available, plug-and-play hardware solutions.
- Leverage scalable and managed cloud services.
With Soracom’s support, you can significantly shorten the cycle from idea to validated solution, ensuring that your IoT initiatives move quickly and effectively from concept to value delivery.
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