You must be aware of the input/output data you require as well as how to obtain it when creating the concept for your solution (e.g. temperature sensor, button, LED, etc.). Besides planning the necessary components for your solution, you should also consider the processing capacity of your hardware. However, keep in mind, the more the better is not always true. A higher processing power also means higher power consumption.

Consider whether you will be using a battery or a constant power supply when developing your IoT solution. This has a significant impact on design. IoT solutions are commonly expected to run on battery for years (due to inaccessibility or cost factors). Lithium-ion or polymer batteries are the most common battery types. Battery-saving modes provided by the network can extend your battery’s life-time.

There are many off-the-shelf hardware options available for all kind of different needs: from testing and prototyping up to full-fledged IoT solutions which can be scaled up for real-life productive use cases. There is not a single answer, wether it make sense to develop your own hardware or to use some pre-made ready-to-use solutions. However, it usually makes sense to use off-the-shelf hardware for prototyping to test and validate your ideas (e.g., with development/evaluation boards, microcontrollers like an Arduino or single board computers like a Raspberry Pi).