Chapter 9 : Technology

The growth of personal technology, in the form of cell phones, laptops, tablets, iPods, and other personal gadgets, is completely changing social interaction on many levels. In this burgeoning technological world it is important to have at least a little bit of background knowledge:

Names to Know:

MICROSOFT: An American based multinational technology company that revolutionized personal computer software. Founded in 1975 by geniuses Bill Gates and Paul Allen, the company develops, manufactures, licenses, supports and sells computer software, consumer electronics and personal computers and services.

APPLE: Another American based multinational technology company and Microsoft’s major competitor. Founded in 1976 by Steve Jobs, Ronald Wayne and Steve Wozniak, Apple’s headquarters is located in California from which is runs its very international brand designing, developing and selling consumer electronics.

DELL: Founded in 1984 by Michael S. Dell, this is one of the biggest privately owned tech companies focusing mainly on personal computers. Based in Texas, Dell, though less popular than Microsoft or Apple, produces, designs, sells and repairs computers.

SONY: A Japanese international conglomerate, SONY was founded in 1946 in Tokyo Japan by Masaru Ibuka and Akio Morito.

XIAOMI: A very new but greatly growing Chinese company, XiaoMi was founded in 2010 by Lei Jun, Lin Bin, Hong Feng, Zhou Guangping, Li Wanqiang, Huang Jiangji, Liu De, and Wang Chuan. Though it has only just begun to be available outside of china, the company shows great promise as its cell phones especially, catch up to the Apple phones in popularity here.

Things to think about when finding the perfect phone for you:

Picking the perfect cell phone for you is no easy feat and there are many important factors to consider in the process. Today people’s phones are like another arm, something they rely on and need to be able to trust! Here are some important things to think about when you are trying to find the perfect phone for you.

MAIN USES: If you have a tough job that requires lots of communication you may want to take this into account when looking for your phone. If you are an avid photographer and use your phone camera all the time that is another thing to consider. If you spend a lot of your time on social media you will want to think about that when looking for phones!

SIZE: In China especially, super large phones are becoming more and more common. However, many people still want to make sure that their phone will fit into their back pocket or small bag. Make sure you decide ahead of time what size phone you are looking for so that you don’t end up hating a great phone just because it isn’t conveniently sized.

PLATFORM: Nowadays the market is full of different platforms for your phone. There is the iconic iOS platform used by Apple products such as the iPhone. However, many people prefer or are more used to the Android set up, found in XiaoMi phones and Samsung phones or the new Microsoft set up. Do some research and find out which platform appeals to you before you decide which brand to go with.

FREQUENCY OF USE: Are you an avid phone user who will always have your phone in hand and relies on it every minute of every day? If so you are going to want to look at the battery life of any phone before you buy it to make sure that you are getting your money’s worth. It is a real bummer to have to find an outlet everywhere you stop throughout a busy day.

*HELPFUL HINT: If you are an avid phone user considering buying a travel charger. This can be plugged in separately from your phone and charged at home so that when you are on the go you can have your phone plugged in and charging in your bag or on your desk at work.

随着个人技术的发展，在手机，笔记本电脑，平板电脑，iPad和其他个人小玩意，在许多层面上彻底地改变着社会的互动。在这个新兴技术的世界里，至少要有一点点相关的知识背景非常重要：

微软：一家美国的跨国技术公司，它彻底改变了个人电脑软件。由天才比尔·盖茨和保罗·艾伦成立于1975年，公司开发、制造、授权、支持和销售计算机软件，用户电子产品和个人电脑和服务。

苹果：另一家美国的跨国技术公司，微软的主要竞争对手。由史蒂夫·乔布斯，罗纳德·韦恩和史蒂夫·沃兹尼亚克成立于1976年，苹果公司的总部设在美国加州，经营着非常国际化的品牌设计、开发和销售用户电子产品。

戴尔：由迈克尔·戴尔创立于1984年，这是最大的民营高科技公司之一，主要专注于个人电脑。总部在德克萨斯州，戴尔比微软或苹果稍冷门一些，主要生产、设计、销售和维修电脑。

索尼：日本国际集团，索尼公司由井深大和盛田昭夫于1946年成立于日本东京。

小米：一家非常新的且成长非常迅速的中国公司，小米由雷军，林斌，洪峰，周光平，黎万强，黄江吉，刘德和王川成立于2010年。虽然中国以外地区的销售才刚刚开始，该公司表示未来其手机极有可能赶上苹果手机的普及。

思考一下如何为自己找到属于你的完美手机：

挑选一只完美手机对你来说不是一件容易的事情，在这个过程中有很多重要的因素要考虑。现在，人们的手机就像是另一只手臂，他们需要依靠它，它需要能够被信任！以下是当你试图找到属于你的最完美手机时要思考的一些重要事情。

主要用途：如果你的工作需要大量的通话，当你寻找你的电话时你可能要考虑到这一点。如果你是一个狂热的摄影师和需要大量使用手机摄像是另一个要考虑的。如果你花很多时间在社交媒体上，你会在寻找手机时要考虑到这一点！

大小：特别是在中国，超大的手机正变得越来越普遍。但很多人仍希望他们的手机能够放进他们的口袋或小包里。请务必提前决定好你想要什么尺寸的手机，这样你最终不会因为它尺寸太大不方便而讨厌一只大手机。

平台：现在市场上充斥着为您的手机设计的不同的平台。如苹果产品iPhone使用的标志性的iOS平台。然而，有很多人更喜欢或更习惯安卓的系统设置，如小米手机和三星手机，或新微软的系统。在你决定使用哪个品牌之前做一些调查研究，并找出哪个平台更吸引你。

使用频率：你是无时无刻都把手机揣在手里，每天每一分钟都依靠它的一个狂热手机用户吗？如果是，在购买之前你会需要考虑手机的电池寿命，以确保你物有所值。这会是一个真正让你为停止忙碌的一天而四处寻找的一个发泄出口。

*提示：如果你是一个狂热手机用户，考虑购买一个旅行充电器。这样你的手机不在家里也能充上电，当你在旅途中或在工作中都能给你的手机充电。