But a new piece of hardware has to go through design revisions, materials tests, and manufacturing regulations before it sees the light of day.

This is why Ville Ylläsjärvi thinks Thingsee One, the open source, Internet of Things gadget his company is Kickstarting, will have staying power. Thingsee One isn't just a sensor-stuffed piece of hardware, it's a developer kit for other hardware makers. "We're solving the hardware equation for them," he says. "Startups can develop their solution using Thingsee One, get on with tests and pilots on the field using Thingsee One, and in many cases get their first customers using Thingsee One."

Thingsee looks like a spiffed up pager, and is packed with sensors for light and pressure, plus an accelerometer, gyroscope, and magnetometer. Together, these sensors allow Thingsee to constantly collect data on its surroundings—like temperature, the speed at which its moved around, the amount of light, and so on—that all get translated into a graphics and icon in the app.