How to shop for remote device management

Remote device management is a complex topic because everyone’s exact requirements for a solution are different. This makes choosing a remote device management solution challenging, as there are few resources that reliably explain how those solutions meaningfully differ.

Here’s how to shop for remote device management the right way. First, you should know that “MDM” (mobile device management”) is very likely the solutions category you’re shopping. Almost all modern MDM tools are, in effect, remote device management platforms — because they all communicate over the cloud to function.

What is remote device management?

Remote device management refers to the ability to centrally manage and control devices like tablets, kiosks, or POS systems from a remote location — a company office, your WFH setup, or from your laptop at a tropical destination. Remote device management software can enable remote configuration, monitoring, application management, and troubleshooting without requiring physical access to the devices. These tasks can be carried out remotely through a centralized management console or platform.

How much does remote device management cost?

The cost of remote device management tools is usually measured in price per device per month and on average works out to $3 to $9 per device. 

These figures are based on actual operational cost, meaning that there is still room for that cost to go much higher in outlier cases. The advertised cost of any given MDM solution is not actually representative of much other than a paper contract value. The real cost to your organization is in the time it takes to set up that solution, deploy new devices, and support existing ones. Your MDM’s billed cost is really just the first line item. Advertised MDM pricing can be anywhere from under $1 per device to $8 per device — or more.

Why is there such variation in solution pricing? How can one remote device management product be worth 200%, 300%, or even 1000% the cost of another? Jumping from $3 to $6 per device makes a huge difference in budgeting! This is where being a savvy shopper counts: You know that being penny wise and pound foolish is a risk when selecting any kind of tool. The money you save today could quickly and uncontrollably be outsized by the operational cost of a bad-fit solution in production.

Remote device management tool checklist

When evaluating the true cost of any remote device management solution — including those that pair hardware as part of their offering — you should look at that solution from the twin perspectives of scalability and suitability to purpose. There is no perfect answer to the “true cost” question, but you can tell a lot about how serious a given solution takes your operational costs by comparing features and functionality.

• Remote control: Cost of viewer versus full control, device count limits, time limits, ease of implementation all matter.
• Remote monitoring: Are there telemetry limits? What telemetry is provided?
• Remote debugging: Is remote debugging available? What kind? Can you stream logging?
• Automated deployment: Is there a way to send devices pre-configured directly into the field without expensive kitting?
• Streamlined provisioning: Even if deployment is not automated, does the solution provide a way to speed up the provisioning process? How much? What alternative provisioning options are available?
• Content management: How much content can be placed in your management cloud? How frequently can it be updated?
• Application management: How many apps can be placed in your management cloud? How often can they be updated? How are the updates delivered?
• Application delivery: How are apps delivered? Do you need to provide your own infrastructure? Is Google Mobile Services (GMS) required?
• OTA updates: Is there infrastructure to deliver device OTAs?
• Custom device and firmware support: Does the solution support your hardware and firmware? Can it? How much engineering is needed?

All of these questions have answers that do not neatly fit into a checkbox, and that is precisely what most MDM solution providers are banking on. There are so many ways a given solution may introduce unnecessary difficulty for your given deployment scenario, use case, or ongoing support and troubleshooting needs that it can feel impossible to get a handle on the landscape without intensive and time-consuming piloting initiatives.

However, this checklist gives you a head start: Many of the above features and functions either are not provided or are cost-added extras on top of per device fees. Most of the pricing for these “extras” is not advertised, as they tend to be reserved for high device count customers in the enterprise space, where tools are budgeted at much greater scale. 

Cutting to the availability and cost of the features on this checklist (as applicable to your use case!) can give you a sense of how much a given solution actually values your time. If everything is an added extra or something “you don’t really need, at least not yet,” that’s a pretty good sign you’re looking at a solution that’s just looking to outprice the competiion. While no one should pay for functionality they don’t “need,” MDM solutions tend to be architected in the opposite way: Functionality that is frequently needed to automate, streamline, or support your operations beyond the “basic” MDM featureset is going to cost you. Be a savvy shopper!

Remote device management and MDM tool red flags

When evaluating a remote device management solution’s fitness for your use case, there are some potential red flags that should give you pause. Solutions that either explicitly or implicitly meet these descriptions could seriously limit your ability to innovate, or lock you in to a supplier or provider you don’t actually want.

• Limited hardware support: If a solution requires you to pick from a highly curated list of approved vendors with no apparent technical limitation that validates such an approach, you may be getting into ecosystem lock-in (and if device prices go up, you may be priced out of your own management solution).
• “All in one” hardware and management: While “device as a service” (DaaS) platforms have their place, they are rarely a substitute for a robust device management solution. When you’re buying hardware from your remote management solution, ecosystem lock-in is guaranteed, and the implications for your device strategy are inherently out of your hands: You’re living on someone else’s hardware lifecycle now. What happens if your current hardware is EOLed early, and you’re forced to spend big on upgrades, or worse, drop the solution entirely?
• Vague commitments on remote features: How well does your remote control solution work? Does it work for all devices, or just the ones you specifically validate? What about telemetry? Getting specific on the ability to use platform features with the hardware you want to deploy is crucial, and solutions providers are frequently loathe about building custom compatibility unless you represent a truly huge business opportunity for them.
• Price first, features second: Most remote device management solutions are set up to provide the minimum viable feature set at the lowest possible price to entice customers with “entry level” solutions. These basic solutions rarely meet anyone’s device management needs, and the upsell for a la carte options or pricier service tiers happens quickly. Getting you “in the door” on the basis of low cost projections is the idea, because you’re paying for something much greater:  The cost of your team’s time implementing and using a tool. Your real device management budget is human, and that’s rarely considered in the shopping process!
• “Dedicated devices” gaps: Dedicated devices require dedicated infrastructure. Typical MDM tools are designed for BYOD and COPU (Corporate Owned, Personal Use) devices that are used much more like traditional smartphones, tablets, and laptops. Dedicated devices are used in radically different ways, and are often much more important to day to day business operations. Most MDM tools simply aren’t built to support dedicated device fleets. Can your MDM solution explain how they’re a “best fit” for dedicated? We doubt it.

How to choose remote device management tools

If you want resources for MDM or remote device management shopping, you’ve come to the right place. Here’s how to get started, no matter where you are in the process.

Once you’ve completed the above steps, you’ll be well on your way to identifying a remote device management best fit!

You can also skip to the good part and set up a demo with Esper today — we’re better than MDM, and we’d love to show you.

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