2010年最佳装备 The best gadgets of the year

It’s Christmas Eve and, just like Santa in “Santa Claus is Coming to Town”, I’ve been making a list, and checking it twice it, but mine is for my own personal gadgets of the year – and I’ve decided to name the naughty ones as well as the nice.

圣诞前夜，我就和“圣诞老人进城啰”中的圣诞老人一样，在忙着罗列一张清单，并来回检查了两遍，不过我列的是自己心仪的年度个人装备——而且我决定列举一些又好又有趣的玩意儿。

First, the best: I judge the best gadgets to be the ones that are well- des­igned, value for money and mature but nevertheless innovative products that make a qualitative difference to my life.

首先，最好的。我认为最佳装备应具有以下特点：设计精良，性价比高，成熟但又富有创新性，能够让我的生活产生质的不同。

My choices might seem a little mundane at first – for instance, a monitor makes it on to my list. But I would argue that having a wider screen with deeper blacks and more vivid colour makes a huge difference to my long hours at the computer, so I really appreciated ViewSonic’s VX2450wm 24in LED monitor, available at a very reasonable discounted price of $180 (£183 in the UK).

乍一看，我这张清单也许有点俗气。比如说，上面居然有款显示器。但我认为：对于我这种长时间对着电脑的人来说，拥有一块黑色更深沉、色彩更鲜活、尺寸更大的显示屏，很有实际意义。所以我真的很欣赏优派(ViewSonic)的VX2450wm 24英寸液晶显示器。这款显示器目前打折后是180美元（在英国是183英镑），相当划算。

I also loved the vivid Super Amoled (active matrix organic light emitting diode) screens on Samsung smartphones, such as the Android Nexus S and the Focus and Omnia 7, which run the groundbreaking Windows Phone 7 operating system.

我也喜欢三星(Samsung)智能手机采用的Super Amoled（主动矩阵有机发光二极体）超炫屏，比如配备Android操作系统的Nexus S，以及配备具有开创性的Windows Phone 7操作系统的Focus和Omnia 7。

A reliable test for a good gadget is how willing I am to hand it back at the end of the review period, and how attached to it my wife or two children become. So, I should mention that I have had a frustrating experience trying to get my hands on the NookColor eReader review unit – the rest of the family are all reading and enjoying books and magazines on it most of the hours of the day, it seems, and it is an exceptional device. Sadly, it is available only in the US so far.

要看一款设备好不好，只要看看测评期结束时我是否甘愿把它交回去，以及我的妻子或两个孩子有多爱不释手就知道了。因此，我得提一下，对于测评用的NookColor电子书阅读器，我简直就没有机会把玩，因为家里其他人似乎一天到晚都在用它读书刊杂志。这也是一款独具一格的设备。遗憾的是，目前只在美国有卖。

However, the family and Apple will have to prise from my cold, dead hands my MacBook Air review unit, as I cannot justify a gift of my own personal $1,000 (£849) machine on the Nuttall family budget.

不过，要从我手里拿走MacBook Air，家里人和苹果得用力掰才行，因为按照纳托尔家的预算，我实在找不出理由给自己买一部1000美元（849英镑）的机器当礼物。

The MacBook Air is my choice for gadget of the year because for me it has combined the best of a tablet and a netbook and obviated the need for a traditional notebook PC.

我把MacBook Air列为年度最佳装备。因为在我看来，这款产品兼具平板电脑和上网本的最佳特性。拥有一部MacBook Air，传统的笔记本电脑就没了用武之地。

It is, and has, everything a portable computing device should be or have – thin, light, long on battery life, but not compromising on a full-sized keyboard, a full computing experience or a high-resolution screen. Its instant lift-the-lid/close-the-lid on-off functionality means I feel immediately productive with it. And it is beautifully designed, from its wafer-thin aluminium casing to the way its magnetised charger leaps and latches on to its connector.

MacBook Air具备便携电脑应当或已经具备的一切特性：纤薄、轻巧、电池寿命长；而且在其它方面也毫不含糊：标准尺寸的键盘、全面的计算机应用体验，以及高分辨率的屏幕。开盖/合盖的瞬时开关功能，让我立刻感受到了它的效率。而且这款产品设计美观，从超薄的铝质机身，到磁化电源适配器吸附到端口上的动作，都极为赏心悦目。

But for $700 less, the gadget of the year that Santa will be bringing me will be a fourth-generation iPod Touch. I bought the second-generation one just over two years ago when I realised the new App Store would turn it into a minicomputer for me.

如果是价位在700美元以下的产品，我希望圣诞老人给我带来的是第四代iPod Touch。两年前我买了一部第二代，当时我就意识到，新开张的App Store（苹果应用软件商店）将使这款机器成为我的迷你电脑。

Now, for the same $300 (£249) pricetag the latest Touch offers twice the processing power and memory (32Gb), longer battery life, adds front and back cameras, a built-in microphone, HD video recording and a much sharper display with double the pixel density. With WiFi calling as well, it has almost all the functionality of an iPhone, without the need for a contract.

如今，最新款Touch的标价同样是300美元（249英镑），但处理能力和内存（32G）增加了一倍，电池寿命更长，并添加了前后摄像头、内置麦克风、高清视频录制功能，以及像素增加一倍带来的更清晰的显示效果。第四代Touch同时具备WiFi电话功能，故而具备iPhone的几乎所有功能，而且购机不用签合同。

A gadget that is very nice – I recommended it in my Christmas gift guide – but with naughty relatives is Jawbone’s Jambox: it is a beautifully designed, ultra-portable Bluetooth speaker. Its drawback is that it suffers from the vagaries of others’ unreliable wireless technology – in my case, when trying to make it a Skype speaker phone for a Windows 7 computer.

一款十分优秀（我在“圣诞礼物指南”中作过推荐）但不太听话的设备是Jawbone出品的Jambox：这是一款设计精美的超便携蓝牙扬声器。它的缺陷是像其它公司不可靠的无线技术那样反复无常——我在试图把它安装到一台Windows 7电脑用于Skype通话时就遇到了问题。

Now for the naughtily overhyped and overrated. As a rule of thumb, anything that is “leading edge” and in its first version falls into this category. The technology always seems exciting and a must-have, but is usually insufficiently mature to fulfil its promise.

现在来讲讲那些被吹得天花乱坠的产品。根据经验法则，处于“前沿”的第一代产品都属于这一类。它们的技术总是显得激动人心，被列为必须拥有的产品，但通常不够成熟，和承诺相去甚远。

So, by these criteria, Google TV, Microsoft’s Kinect motion controller and even Apple’s iPad fail to make my shortlist for gadgets of the year, although all three open up new possibilities and could have a profound effect on our personal tech lives in the future – just not yet.

依据这些标准，Google TV、微软的Kinect体感控制器乃至苹果的iPad都不能入围我的年度装备清单，尽管这三款产品都给我们带来了新的可能性，今后可能对我们的个人科技生活产生深远影响——但时候还未到。

Google TV has received a lukewarm reception from critics and consumers in the US and Google is scaling back plans for a wider launch while it puts more work in. I found it an overly complex collision of the web and television, with incomplete search functionality for anyone without Dish Network satellite TV and few worthwhile apps available so far for the bigger screen.

美国评论界和消费者对Google TV的反应不温不火，目前谷歌一方面投入了更多工作，一方面收缩了大范围投放的计划。我发现该产品在网络和电视方面的冲突极其错综复杂，对没有开通Dish Network卫星电视的用户来说，其搜索功能很不完善，而针对大屏幕的应用软件也乏善可陈。

The Kinect camera, with its motion-sensing controller for the Xbox 360, can make casual games a lot of fun, but set-up can take a long time; gesture and voice commands are rudimentary; and some of the games are too dumbed down.

Kinect摄像头配有适用于Xbox 360的体感控制器，能够大大增加休闲游戏的趣味性，但安装起来太费时；姿势和声音控制流于粗陋；部分游戏过于低能。

I tried the iPad for two weeks when it launched and was entertained, but I found it less than compelling – neither good for productivity, thanks to its onscreen keyboard, nor great for leisure use, with its limited range of apps and the heaviness felt after a while from propping it up. It could still become a gadget of the year – in 2011: these problems can be fixed with a proper case and external keyboard. The choice and capabilities of apps are already vastly improving and a second-generation, lighter iPad with cameras could make the difference.

iPad上市后，我试用了两周，感觉乐在其中，但我认为它不是特别让人心动——由于采用屏幕键盘，所以效率不高；有限的应用软件，和拿一会儿之后沉重的手感，让它从娱乐休闲用途来说也不算出色。但它依然有望成为年度装备——在2011年；假如采用合适的机身和外接键盘，这些问题就可得到解决。目前应用软件的种类和功能已经大有改善，相信配有摄像头、更为轻巧的第二代iPad将大为不同。

Cameras are being married with videocalling generally at the moment, and this is perhaps the most promoted and least satisfying gadget feature of 2010. I have been underwhelmed by it on an Android phone, the iPhone, iPod Touch, Google TV Logitech Revue, Microsoft Kinect and Cisco Umi. The main problem is flaky connectivity and there is no inter- operability between different systems – you cannot videocall someone with a Kinect from your Logitech Revue camera, for example. However, videocalling should improve in quality and connectivity next year.

摄像头目前普遍会配上视频通话功能，这或许是2010年电子产品改进最大、但最让人不满意的地方。一款Android手机、iPhone、iPod Touch、Google TV Logitech Revue、微软Kinect以及思科(Cisco) Umi的这项功能都没激起我的兴趣。主要问题是连接不稳定，不同系统之间互不兼容。比如说，如果你使用的是Logitech Revue摄像头，就无法与使用Kinect的人视频通话。不过，视频通话的质量和连接性能明年应该会有所改善。

In next week’s column, I will be looking at how to improve your health through technology and some new year resolutions. Then it’s off to Las Vegas for the Consumer Electronics Show at the start of January and a preview of the best gadgets of 2011.

在下周的专栏上，我将着眼于如何借助科技和新年的决心增进个人健康，然后讲讲将于1月初举办的洛杉矶消费电子展，并且预览一番2011年的最佳装备。

●Apple MacBook Air – my gadget of the year. Who needs a tablet when something is this light, has long battery life and instant on and off features, while still offering a full-service computing experience?

2010年电子设备清单：

●iPod Touch 4th Generation – a more affordable runner-up, Apple adds cameras, HD video, a better screen and more storage to what was already a superb computing, gaming and media portable device.

●苹果的MacBook Air – 我把它列为年度最佳装备。既然有这么轻巧、电池寿命长、具备瞬时开关功能，并能提供全面电脑应用体验的设备，谁还需要平板电脑？

●NookColor – US only, but Barnes & Noble shows the way forward with colour and a well-thought-out reading experience. The Amazon Kindle is equally recommended internationally.

●iPod Touch第四代 – 价位比较合适的亚军。这款兼具计算、游戏和媒体功能的便携设备本已十分出色，第四代更是添加了摄像头、高清视频功能，而且显示器更加优良，存储容量也有扩大。

●Samsung smartphones – Samsung has produced a series of great devices from its Galaxy and Nexus S Androids to the Focus and Omnia 7 Windows Phone 7 handsets, all starring the vivid Super Amoled screens that look great in any light.

●NookColor – 只在美国有售，但Barnes & Noble开创了经过深思熟虑的彩色阅读体验。亚马逊(Amazon)的Kindle同样值得在国际上推荐。

●LED monitors – Greener, leaner widescreen LED- backlit monitors give better blacks and more vivid colours at affordable prices – a 24in ViewSonic screen

●三星智能手机 – 三星出品了一系列优秀产品，从应用Android系统的Galaxy和Nexus S，到应用Windows Phone 7系统的Focus和Omnia 7，它们全都采用在任何光线下都很出彩的色彩生动Super Amoled超炫屏。

can cost less than $200.

●液晶显示器 – 更环保、更纤薄的宽屏背光液晶显示器带来更佳的黑色和更鲜活的色彩，价格也不高。不到200美元就能买到一台24英寸的优派显示器。

●Google TV – Google’s first attempt to marry the web and television falls short with over-complex remote controls and keyboards; limited search functionality; and few compelling apps for the big screen.

●Google TV – 谷歌首次尝试把网络和电视结合在一起，但这款产品存在以下缺陷：远程控制和键盘过于复杂；搜索功能有限；很少有针对大屏幕的出色应用软件。

●Microsoft Kinect – Can be great fun, but Microsoft has a lot of work left to do in making gestures the interface of the future. Some of the games are too dumbed down, and set up processes can be a bore.

●微软的Kinect – 可能会十分好玩，但微软要把姿势变成未来的界面还有大量工作要做。部分游戏过于低能，而且安装程序会让人厌烦。

●Apple iPad – A lighter version, with cameras and more apps that exploit this tablet’s potential could make this the best gadget of 2011, but its first iteration is not compelling enough.

●苹果的iPad – 新一代iPad假如更加轻巧、配备摄像头且应用软件更加丰富多样，能够充分发挥这款平板电脑的潜力，就有望成为2011年的最佳装备，第一代还不够强大。

●Videocalling – the most overhyped and underwhelming feature in 2010. Flaky connections and the lack of interoperability between different systems mean it will be slow to take off.

●视频通话 – 2010年吹得最天花乱坠、最不能叫人满意的电子产品功能。脆弱的连接和不同系统之间不能兼容，注定视频通话将发展缓慢。

●Cisco Umi – the worst of the videoconferencing offerings for the home: expensive; requires a monthly subscription and considerable bandwidth; big and clunky; does not work internationally or with Cisco’s corporate systems.

●思科的Umi – 最差劲的家用视频聊天产品：价钱昂贵；有月租费且占用很多带宽；粗大笨重；不能在国际间使用，也不能和思科的企业系统一同使用。