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Hello and welcome to Six Minute English! I’m Catherine.
大家好，歡迎來到六分鐘英語！我是凱瑟琳。
And I’m Rob, and today we bring you a techy topic along with six up-to-date vocabulary items.
我是羅伯，今天我們會為你帶來一個科技類話題以及六個最新詞彙。
That’s right. And today’s techy topic is smartphones. So Rob, can you tell me which age group have been buying smartphones at the fastest rate over the last five years here in the UK? Is it…a) 15-35 year olds, b) 35-55 year olds or c) 55-75 year olds?
是的。今天的科技類話題是智能機。所以羅伯，你能告訴我在過去的五年裡英國哪個年齡群的人購買智能機的比率最大嗎？是a）15-35歲，b）35-55歲， 還是c）55-75歲？
OK. It’s got to be the youngsters. It’s got to be the 15-35 year olds.
必須是年輕人啊。應該是15-35歲。
Oh, well. We’ll see whether you got that right or wrong later on in the show. Now Rob, a question: how old is your smartphone?
好吧。稍後我們會在節目中看看你是否回答正確。現在，羅伯回答我一個問題：你的智能機用了多久了？
OK, mine, I bought it a couple of years ago.
好的，我的手機的話，買了有幾年了。
And are you happy with it?
你用著開心嗎？
Yes, I am. It works just fine. It does everything I need it to do.
是的，我用得挺好。它運行良好，可以完成我需要它做的所有事情。
So you’re not worried about not having the latest model?
所以你不擔心沒有最新的機型嗎？
Not at all. My phone works really well, it has all the functionality I need. And I’m not convinced that the latest model offers any more than the one I’ve got, to be honest.
一點也不。我的手機工作狀況很好，它擁有我需要的所有性能。而且老實說，我不確定最新機型能夠提供更多的功能。
Right. Well, functionality refers to the range of functions a computer or other electronic device can perform. So, let’s listen now to Andrew Orlowski, from the tech news website-The Register. He explains why people are holding onto their phones longer instead of rushing out to buy the latest model of phone.
好吧。Functionality指的是電腦或者電子設備所能執行的一系列功能。所以現在讓我們聽一下科技新聞網站The Register的安德魯•奧爾洛夫斯基是怎麼說的。他會解釋為什麼人們會更長久地使用他們的手機而不是急於去買最新機型。
What happened is that prices have gone up at the high end. And it’s kind of a cycle, where people hang onto their phones for longer, therefore manufacturers charge more. Then people hang onto them longer to justify that higher purchase.
因為新機型的價格已經上升到了頂端。並且這也是一種循環，人們使用已購手機的時間越長，製造商生產新手機的要價越高。然後人們對其的使用時間也會更長，來證明它物有所值。
So big brand names, like iPhone and Samsung, make phones at the high end of the market, meaning the expensive ones. So once people have bought a handset, they hang on to it! If you hang onto something, you keep it. I’ve been hanging onto my phone for a couple of years, and am hoping I won’t need to change it for another year or so, at least.
所以那些大的品牌，像蘋果和三星，他們製造市場頂端的機型，指的就是那些昂貴的機型。所以人們一旦買了手機，就會使用很長時間。如果你hang onto someting指的就是你長久地保留它。我的手機已經用了好幾年了，而且我希望至少在一年左右都不需要換手機。
But what happens is, if people aren’t replacing their phones, the phone manufacturers don’t make a big enough profit. So they start charging more.
但是現在的情況是，如果人們不替換他們的手機，手機制造商就沒有足夠的利潤。所以他們手機的要價就更高。
And this, in turn, makes people hang onto their phones even longer! So that’s why Andrew Orlowski calls it a cycle. That’s where one event leads to another, and then often repeats itself.
這樣反而會使人們對一部手機的使用時間更長。所以這就是為什麼安德魯•奧爾洛夫斯基將其稱為循環。那指的是一項事件導致了另一項事件，然後又經常重複到這個事件的過程。
So where will the cycle end?
所以這個循環將會在哪裡結束？
Good question! Let’s listen to Andrew again, talking about where he thinks the smartphone market is heading.
問得好！讓我們再聽安德魯說一下他認為智能機市場將會走向何方。
I think it’s a very mature market now. And you have to compare, say, a £900 Galaxy Note or a £1000 iPhone with a spectacular TV you can… a 49 inch TV you can get for £450. No longer has that kind of must-have lustre that it might have had 4 or 5 years ago.
我認為現在的市場非常成熟。並且你必須要比較一下，一個900英鎊的三星Galaxy Note手機，或者一個1000英鎊的蘋果手機，與一個49英寸，要價450英鎊的的大電視比較。不再有那種四五年前那種必須品的感覺。
So what does ’mature’ mean, Rob?
所以羅伯，mature指的是什麼？
Mature means fully-grown.We’re mature adults for example, Catherine! And in a business context, a mature market is where supply is equal to demand.
Mature指的是發育完全的。例如我們是成熟的成年人了，凱瑟琳！並且在商業環境中，一個成熟的市場指的是供求相等。
And if something has ’must-have lustre’? What’s that?
而且某些事（物）是否有must-have lustre？那指的是什麼？
A must-have item is something you feel you must have. And lustre means shine.
A must-have item指的是你感覺自己必須有的某些東西。Lustre指的是光澤。
I love shiny new things, especially when it’s a nice piece of new tech. But £1000 is a lot of money for a phone. A spectacular 49-inch TV for only £450 sounds like a bargain though!My TV only got small screen.
我喜歡閃耀的新事物，特別是新技術方面不錯的東西。但是對於手機來說，1000英鎊是一個大數目。一個49英寸的大電視只要450英鎊聽起來就像是特價商品。我的電視很小。
Stop there, Catherine! It’s time for the answer to today’s question.
就那個話題上停住吧！該是揭曉今天問題答案的時刻了。
OK, so which age group have been buying smartphones at the fastest rate over the last five years here in the UK? Is it… a) 15-35 year olds, b) 35-55 year olds, or c) 55-75 year olds?
好吧，所以在過去的五年裡英國哪個年齡群的人購買智能機的比率最大？是a）15-35歲，b）35-55歲， 還是c）55-75歲？
And I said youngsters, 15-35 year olds.
我回答的是年輕人，15-35歲。
And you were absolutely wrong, I’m afraid, Rob! The answer is 55-75 year olds! Although research also highlighted that this age group tended to use their smartphones less than younger people.The study was based on a sample of 1,163 people questioned between May and June in 2017.
羅伯，恐怕你完全錯誤！答案是55-75歲！儘管調查同樣強調這個年齡群的人使用智能機的傾向比年輕人低。這項研究是基於2017年五六月間對1163位調查者進行的。
Interesting. OK, I think it’s time we looked back at the words we learned today. .Our first word is ’functionality’, which refers to the range of functions a computer of other electronic device can perform.
有意思。好的，我認為現在我們該回顧一下今天所學到的單詞。我們第一個詞是functionality，指的是電腦或者其他電子設備所能執行的一系列功能。
These two computers are similar in terms of both their price and functionality.’
這兩款電腦在價格和性能上來說都是相似的。
Good example, Catherine. Number two, if you hang on to something, you keep it. For example, ’You should hang onto your old TV, Catherine. There’s nothing wrong with a 30-inch screen!’
好例子，凱瑟琳。第二個，如果你緊抓某物不放，指的是保留某物。例如，你應該保留你的舊電視，凱瑟琳。30英寸的屏幕沒有什麼錯。
Thanks for the advice, Rob. And our next word is ’cycle’. That’s where one event leads to another, and then often repeats itself. For example, ’I’m in a bad cycle of going to bed late, and then oversleeping in the morning.’
感謝你的建議，羅伯。我們下一個詞是cycle。那指的是一項事件導致了另一項事件，然後經常重複到某一事件的過程。例如，我現在處於晚睡的惡性循壞，然後早上會睡過頭。
You need to sort yourself out, Catherine! You’re spending too much time on social media, and all that blue-screen time makes it very hard to fall asleep. The last thing you need is a bigger TV!
你需要解決自己的這個問題，凱瑟琳！你花費太多時間在社交媒體上了，而且長期盯著那些藍色屏幕使人難以入睡。你最不需要的就是更大的電視。
You’re probably right. OK, the adjective ’mature’ means fully grown or fully developed. And here’s an example of the verb form– ’My investments have matured and they’re worth a lot of money now!’
你或許是對的。好的，形容詞mature指的是發育完全或者是發展充分。這裡有一個動詞形式的例子。我的投資項目已經成熟，它們現在值很多錢了。
Right, moving on, a ’must-have item’ is something you feel you must have! For example, ’Check out the latest must-have tech bargains on our website!’
是的，繼續，a must-have item指的是你感覺自己必須有的某些事物！例如，檢查一下我們網站上最近必須的科技特價商品。
Like huge TV.
像大電視。
Yes.
是的。
And finally, ’lustre’, which means shine.
最後一個詞lustre,指的是光澤。
For example, ’I polished my brass doorknob until it shone with a pleasing lustre.’
例如， 我擦拭我的黃銅門把手直到它閃耀著悅目的光澤。
Bye!
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