Around the growth of The Internet of Things there are percentages and then there are the raw numbers. While the growth percentages are huge by just about any measure, the size of the actual numbers is even more staggering. Earlier this week, I aggregated many of the percentages around the IoT, as I wrote about here. I thought it now might be useful to take a look at the year-end numbers around The Internet of Things.

More wearables - and consumer robots - are on the way. Forecasts for the future number of connected wearable devices continue to top each other, and the latest report continues that trend. Shipments of connected wearables reached 73 million this year, according to a new study by Berg Insight. But that's nothing compared to what's coming.

Keeping up with the many forecasts around The Internet of Things can be a full-time job in itself. Since I regularly track the flood of research reports that aim to predict where the connected objects juggernaut is headed, I thought it might be helpful to aggregate a year-end snapshot of current market data points.

The Internet of Things will be made up of many things that are constantly on the move. Many of the connected objects will be stationary, of course, and a lot of those already are being put in place. There are the obvious smart objects, such as connected thermostats at home and beacons in stores.

Many things of The Internet of Things are quickly getting into the hands of consumers. We're talking about a lot of connected devices being bought now as holiday gifts. More than 50 million smart gadgets will be sold during this holiday season, based on a new global estimate.

Mobile shoppers often are looking for deals and it looks like more of those deals will be coming thanks to beacons. While the number of coupons delivered via beacon technology this year is estimated in the millions, it is on the way past a billion, based on a new study. The number of coupons delivered after being triggered by beacons is projected to hit 1.6 billion in 2020, up from 11 million this year, according to Juniper Research, which interviewed leading couponing players.

Just as was the case in the early days of mobile, early adopters of The Internet of Things tend to be open to trying new things, even if not yet fully baked. Much of the current market focus is on which consumers will purchase which type of smart object or wearable device, so that brands and marketers can try to stay a step or two ahead. I just came across some new research that may shed some light on that, even before the masses wake up to IoT devices.

At year end, all the forecasts for the next several years come rolling in and The Internet of Things is heavy in the mix, as might be expected. The five-year forecasts generally have the number of connected objects skyrocketing, the widespread adoption of smart everything and billions of sensors of various types pretty much everywhere. While many of these forecasts can be useful indicators for long-term strategic planning in an organization, five years from now not many people are likely to look back to check the accuracy of these forecasts.

While technology around The Internet of Things proliferates, consumers seem to be waiting for tangible and practical benefits. Even though ownership of smart home products increased in the last year, everyone is not rushing out to get the latest connected home gadgetry. The number of smart home products owned by consumers increased more than 50% over the last year, according to a new study by Parks Associates. Growth is projected to continue, with 43% of U.S. households that have broadband planning to purchase a smart home device in the next 12 months.

The number of wearable devices is growing, by a lot. The number of fitness trackers and smartwatches shipped around the world in the last quarter is about double the number shipped a year ago, according to the latest IDC Tracker report. Leading the category are fitness trackers by Fitbit followed by the Apple Watch.