iPhone 5c: 一頭披着塑料外殼的狼

While it is not quite a curate’s egg, Apple’s mid-range iPhone 5c is a well-balanced evolution of the iPhone 5 that makes some safe choices without endangering the brand. There are some small improvements over last year’s iPhone 5 hardware, notably the update to iOS7. Apple has bundled even more first-party software to make the handset feature-rich out of the box. This is all wrapped up in the new colorful shells that make the iPhone 5c stand out in a retail sea of charcoal and white smartphones

雖然iPhone 5c稱不上不好不壞，但蘋果（Apple）這款中檔手機在iPhone 5的基礎上兼顧了各方面而加以發展，做出了一些穩妥的選擇，沒有危及公司品牌。相較於去年的iPhone 5，這款手機有一些小小的改進，尤其是系統升級到了iOS 7。蘋果爲iPhone 5c捆綁了更多的自家應用，使它在拆開包裝使用時即具備豐富的功能。這款手機都包裹在五顏六色的新彩殼當中，在由黑與白構成的智能手機海洋中，這些彩殼讓iPhone 5c獨樹一幟。

In previous years, Apple would have simply dropped the price of last year’s model to take the ‘silver’ spot on the iPhone podium. At their September 2013 event they revealed another approach. The iPhone 5c would take the place of the iPhone 5, while the iPhone 5s ( reviewed previously here on Forbes) would become the flagship phone.

在過去幾年裏，蘋果會調低上一年機型的價格，讓新iPhone成爲旗艦機型。在2013年9月舉行的發佈會上，他們展示了另一種方法。iPhone 5c將取代iPhone 5的位置，而iPhone 5s則將成爲旗艦機型。

Replacing the iPhone 5 has coloured the online viewpoint of the iPhone 5c, making it a cheaper iPhone 5 with the plastic case replacing the metal covering of the earlier models, while retaining the majority of the internals. In fact the iPhone 5c has several advantages over the 2012 flagship in hardware and software. Because the iPhone 5c can be marketed as a new smartphone, it’s a far more attractive handset to retail stores and consumers than a twelve month old iPhone 5.

取代iPhone 5這件事讓網絡上對iPhone 5c的看法變得多樣起來，它成爲配備塑料外殼的廉價版iPhone 5，先前機型中的金屬外殼不見了，但內部的大部分構件被保留下來。事實上，相對於2012年的旗艦機型來說，iPhone 5c在硬件和軟件上均有多項提升。由於iPhone 5c可以作爲一款新智能手機進行營銷推廣，相較於上市銷售已有12個月的iPhone 5，它對零售商店和消費者來說更有吸引力。

But we’re here to look at the handset as a whole, not the marketing exercises behind it. Putting aside the casing for the moment, those hardware changes start with the FaceTime camera on the front of the handset. The pixel count has increased to 1.2 megapixels, and there are improvements to the backside illuminated sensor. These result in a clearer picture for voice calls. Battery life has been improved through a mix of software improvements and a slightly larger battery. There are the improved LTE frequencies that allow an iPhone 5c to work in more countries on 4G. That’s great for the frequent traveller who is looking to roam, but I get the feeling that’s not the target market for this handset . What it does offer is another saving for Apple, this time in distribution and management as more worldwide support means less SKUs to manage.

不過，我們在這裏是從整體上討論iPhone 5c，而不是隻討論其背後的營銷策略。暫且拋開外殼不談，iPhone 5c硬件的改進首先從手機正面的FaceTime攝像頭開始，其像素數已經提升至120萬，而且手機的背照式感光組件也得到了改進。這在進行語音通話時會讓圖片顯示更清晰。通過一系列的軟件改進以及裝備尺寸稍大一點的電池，iPhone 5c的電池續航時間得以延長。LTE頻率的改進則讓iPhone 5c能夠在更多國家的4G網絡中使用，這對經常出差旅行需要手機漫遊的人來說非常棒，但我感覺商務人士並非這款手機的目標市場。它爲蘋果提供的是另一種好處，即分銷和管理更加輕鬆，因爲支持更多國家的網絡意味着該公司需要管理的庫存單位變少了。

Finally you have the big selling point of the iPhone 5c, the colorful polycarbonate plastic casing. Replacing the metal casing that the iPhone 5 had and that the iPhone 5s retains, Apple has reduced the bill of materials cost in making the handset, which makes the traditional discount of $100 between the flagship and the second place model economical. Apple’s strategy continues to focus on high margins and desirable handsets, and the 5c allows them to continue the traditional pricing structure without having to compromise the margin a cheaper aluminium smartphone would offer.

最後，我們終於要談到iPhone 5c的最大賣點——多彩的聚碳酸脂塑料外殼了。通過替換掉iPhone 5以及iPhone 5s所使用的金屬外殼，蘋果減少了製造iPhone 5c的物料成本，這讓旗艦機型和第二位機型之間100美元的傳統差價顯得非常經濟實惠。蘋果的戰略繼續專注於高利潤率和大家都渴望擁有的手機上，iPhone 5c讓該公司能夠繼續執行傳統的定價結構，而不必犧牲一款較廉價鋁製智能手機所能提供的利潤率。

It also allows Apple to bring some rather bright colours into the iPhone range, reaching out to the fashionable market with the handset available in white, red, yellow, blue, and green. iOS7 also provides a dynamic wallpaper for each color to theme the software environment to the case. Apple’s range of colors matches that of the iPod range and while it is a novelty on the iPhone, it simply brings them up to date with other manufactures, notably Nokia.

它同樣還讓蘋果把一些非常明亮的色彩帶到iPhone系列產品中來，以白色、紅色、黃色、藍色以及綠色的不同色彩打入時尚的市場。iOS 7還針對每一種顏色提供了動態壁紙，以讓軟件運行環境跟手機外殼匹配。蘋果提供的顏色選擇跟iPod系列產品是一樣的，儘管這在iPhone上是件新鮮事，但其實也只是跟上了其他手機制造商的步伐，尤其是諾基亞（Nokia）。

What the polycarbonate does do is add slightly to the dimensions of the 5c over the 5s. The colorful model is roughly one millimetre larger in each direction. In a side to side comparison you can appreciate this difference, but in day-to-day use when you just have a 5c it’s not going to make a difference. The weight has also went up, the 5c has found another 20g over the 5s and the iPhone 5. I suspect this is a mix of larger battery and the plastic requiring more volume and mass to have enough strength and rigidity, although this is aided by an internal steel frame.

聚碳酸酯外殼讓iPhone 5c要比5s稍微厚一點，前者在各個方向上都要比後者大上1毫米左右。把這兩款手機並排放在一起比較，你就能看出這種區別，不過當你只有一臺5c時，這在日常使用中不會有什麼影響。重量同樣增加了，5c的重量比5s和iPhone 5要多20克。我懷疑這是因爲5c裝備了更大的電池，而且塑料也需要更多的體積和質量來提供足夠的強度和剛度——雖然有內置的鋼架進行支撐。

The iPhone 5c has a glossy and tactile feel to it, although I found there was enough friction between my hand and the case to keep the 5c feeling secure in my hand. This is helped by the smaller size of the 5c compared to devices like the Samsung Galaxy S4. It’s easier to grip around the sides of Apple’s smartphone, there’s less strain on the hand and arm with the lower weight of the device, and while the splashes of color might not be suitable for the boardroom, I had no qualms about bringing out the green review unit in social circumstances.

iPhone 5c擁有光滑的觸感，不過我發現在手跟外殼之間存在足夠的摩擦力，讓我能夠牢牢把它握在手中。相較於三星（Samsung）Galaxy S4那樣的手機，5c的較小尺寸也有助於這一點。你很容易從兩側握住蘋果的智能手機，由於重量較輕，你的手和手臂也不會承受太大的負重。儘管繽紛的色彩不適於在會議室出現，但我會毫不遲疑地把一款綠色5c帶到社交場合。

The idea of the iPhone 5c being a personal and leisure smartphone is enhanced with the retail packaging. Shipping in a rounded box, the iPhone 5c looks more like an iPod Touch or iPod Nano than the more business-like iPhone 5s. Along with the smartphone, Apple has packaged a set of Apple EarPods, the lightning to USB cable, and an AC charger. All very consumer friendly and it sets the expectations of the device nicely.

iPhone 5c是一款個性化和休閒的智能手機，這個信息由其零售包裝加以強化。5c的包裝是一個圓形的盒子，這讓它看起來像iPod Touch或iPod Nano，而不是更具商務色彩的iPhone 5s。包裝盒裏除了手機，還有一組蘋果EarPods耳機、閃電接口數據線以及交流充電器。這一切都對消費者非常友好，並讓人對iPhone 5c產生很好的預期。