Skip to main content

The context you need, when you need it

When news breaks, you need to understand what actually matters — and what to do about it. At Vox, our mission to help you make sense of the world has never been more vital. But we can’t do it on our own.

We rely on readers like you to fund our journalism. Will you support our work and become a Vox Member today?

Join now

Here’s a Thing to Help Put Things on the Internet of Things

Startup Spark IO wants to help you build gadgets that can talk to the cellular networks.

Via Spark IO

If you buy the argument that the so-called Internet of Things is going to grow from one billion devices to more than five billion over the next five years, then you might want to start thinking about ways you can design and build those things.

Here’s a thing that could soon help you get started. It’s called the Electron, and its a $39 kit meant to help product developers design devices that can be connected in some way to cellular towers. Dreaming of a thing that needs something more than a Wi-Fi connection? Here’s your chance to start building a prototype.

Electron is the subject of a Kickstarter campaign that has already raised $90,000, or about three times its goal, to get the first units built.

It comes from Spark IO, a 24-person startup that has previously built two other IoT kits, Spark Core and Photon, both of which were Wi-Fi development kits. To help nudge developers with cellular ambitions along, the outfit has become an MVNO, or mobile virtual network operator, a type of wireless carrier that resells capacity from the big wireless networks. The kit comes with a SIM card and wireless plan that costs about $3 a month.

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

See More:

More in Technology

Future Perfect
The 5 most unhinged revelations from Elon Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAIThe 5 most unhinged revelations from Elon Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI
Future Perfect

The Musk v. OpenAI trial is over. Here are the receipts.

By Sara Herschander
Podcasts
Are humanoid robots all hype?Are humanoid robots all hype?
Podcast
Podcasts

AI is making them better — but they’re not going to be doing your chores anytime soon.

By Avishay Artsy and Sean Rameswaram
Future Perfect
The old tech that could help stop the next airborne pandemicThe old tech that could help stop the next airborne pandemic
Future Perfect

Glycol vapors, explained.

By Shayna Korol
Future Perfect
Elon Musk could lose his case against OpenAI — and still get what he wantsElon Musk could lose his case against OpenAI — and still get what he wants
Future Perfect

It’s not about who wins. It’s about the dirty laundry you air along the way.

By Sara Herschander
Life
Why banning kids from AI isn’t the answerWhy banning kids from AI isn’t the answer
Life

What kids really need in the age of artificial intelligence.

By Anna North
Culture
Anthropic owes authors $1.5B for pirating work — but the claims process is a Kafkaesque messAnthropic owes authors $1.5B for pirating work — but the claims process is a Kafkaesque mess
Culture

“Your AI monster ate all our work. Now you’re trying to pay us off with this piece of garbage that doesn’t work.”

By Constance Grady