How to choose an IoT development company: 10 questions to ask
Ten questions and five red flags that separate an IoT development company that has shipped devices from one that has only shipped apps.
Karan · Founder & CTO, NavikX
· 7 MIN READ
Choose an IoT development company that has shipped devices, not just apps: ask who writes the firmware, how they test on real hardware, how they handle OTA updates, and who owns the code. The answers separate device engineers from app agencies quickly.
Why IoT vendors are harder to judge than app agencies
Almost any agency can show a polished app. Far fewer can show a device that pairs reliably, survives a failed update and still works after a year in a customer's home. The difference only shows up after launch, so you have to ask the right questions before you sign.
10 questions to ask before you hire
- Who writes the firmware: your team, a subcontractor, or ours?
- Can you show a device you shipped, with the firmware, app and cloud you built?
- How do you design the protocol between the device and the app?
- How do you test on our hardware if you are not in our office?
- How do over-the-air updates work, and what happens if one fails mid-way?
- Which phones and OS versions do you test BLE or Wi-Fi setup on?
- Who owns the code, and where does it live from day one?
- How do you price: fixed after scoping, or open-ended hourly?
- How do you work with our hardware partner?
- What happens after launch: support, updates, and handover?
Red flags
- A fixed price before anyone has looked at your hardware or existing code.
- Separate vendors for firmware and app with no single owner of the protocol.
- Testing described only in simulators or on the vendor's own dev kits.
- Code kept in the vendor's repository until the final payment.
- No answer to 'what happens if an update fails'.
FAQ
Should firmware and app be built by the same company?
When possible, yes. One owner for the protocol between them removes the most common source of bugs and delays in connected products.
Is it risky to hire an IoT team in another country?
It is manageable with the right terms: code in your repository from day one, an NDA before details, milestone payments and a fixed daily overlap with your working hours.
Karan Kumar Maurya · Founder & CTO, NavikX
LinkedIn