Edge computing vs cloud computing

We live in a hyperconnected world, in which users and data are omnipresent. According to the  Digital 2021 Global Overview Report (January 2021), the number of internet users globally has grown 7.3%, reaching a total of 4.660 million people. This means that 59.5% of the world population demands fast, effective and high quality access to the content of their interest online. In the past, we could spend hours on Napster, Ares, Limewire or any other software to download an episode of our favorite series, or a movie we wanted to watch at home, but that’s not the scenario anymore. 

Today we have high expectations, and our high-performance requirements have led to the evolution and emergence of new paradigms. Concepts such as 5G, Internet of Things, cloud and edge computing, are now part of our daily vocabulary. And those two paradigms (cloud computing and edge computing), are the ones we’re about to discuss. 

WHAT IS CLOUD COMPUTING?

We’ve been talking about cloud computing for several years now: it uses remote servers or data centers to store, process, compute and analyze massive amounts of data, with the goal of providing different services through the Internet. When delivering those services, we need to consider that data centers are usually remote, which means that there’s a small time lapse between the collection and the processing of the data. This gap is imperceptible in the vast majority of cases. But those milliseconds can have a huge impact.

The coming and going of the information between data centers and users consumes significant bandwidth, which also increases the time required for data processing and transfers. This brings up the need for a new computing paradigm that addresses the new needs of modern technologies and IoT devices. We are talking about edge computing. 

EDGE COMPUTING: THE CONCEPT

When we talk about edge computing, we are referring to the paradigm of distributed computing that brings the data processing and storage closer to the point where it’s generated: the point where the physical world interacts with the digital world. 

The transition was made in its time, from heavy, physical monolithic architecture to agile cloud. So Transparent Edge offers to companies, organizations and institutions of the Internet world, the execution of distributed services at the edge, in a simple and easy way, providing the tools and support required to achieve their goals and make the transition to this new paradigm. 

EDGE COMPUTING: APPLICATIONS

Under the edge computing paradigm, we are both decentralizing the provisioning of data and services through our globally distributed PoPs, and also focusing on taking advantage of smart devices, such as smartphones and network gateways and their computing capacities near the user. 

By reducing the data and traffic volume, edge applications result in lower latency and they reduce the transmission costs. So, caching, storing and distributing content through edge computing generates better response times, better security, and as a result, it saves costs. 

What are you waiting for to jump to the edge with us?