Name: iPhone的真正的成本 (The True Cost of the iPhone)
Uploaded: 2019-09-24T02:27:38.000Z
Duration: 12 min 54 s

基礎被動語態

The first 200 to use the link in the description get 20% off the annual subscription.

前200名使用描述中的鏈接可獲得年度訂閱的8折優惠。

2018年對於蘋果來說是雲霄飛車般的一年。

In August, its stock hit two-hundred and seven dollars, making it the first trillion dollar

8月，其股價創下貳零壹柒美元，成為首個萬億美元的

Then, in a dramatic few months, it lost $450 billion as Microsoft, Amazon, and Alphabet

然後，在戲劇性的幾個月裡，它損失了4500億美元，因為微軟、亞馬遜和Alphabet

And for the first time in fifteen years, the company announced it would make less money

而十五年來，公司首次宣佈將少賺點錢。

The reasons are many: China's slowing economy, sticker shock, market saturation.

原因是多方面的。中國經濟放緩，貼紙衝擊，市場飽和。

But there's also another big factor: Apple has a new competitor.

但還有一個重要因素。蘋果有了一個新的競爭對手。

The iPhone is increasingly competing with itself.

iPhone與自己的競爭越來越激烈。

One, because we're all holding on to them longer.

一，因為我們都在堅持較長時間。

But also because it doesn't cost what you think it does.

但也因為它的成本並不是你想的那樣。

As the price of an iPhone goes up, something new is happening to its value, and it's

隨著iPhone價格的上漲，它的價值也發生了新的變化，這就是

shaking up Apple's entire business model.

To understand what's really going on, we need to calculate the actual, hidden price

為了瞭解真實情況，我們需要計算實際的、隱藏的價格。

Generally speaking, there are two ways you can get rich selling things to people:

一般來說，向人推銷東西有兩種方式可以致富。

One, you can play the numbers game - Sell a gazillion small things for a few cents profit

一、你可以玩數字遊戲--賣出無數小東西，獲得幾毛錢的利潤。

Think: Gas stations, grocery stores, and, on a good day, Amazon.

想想看：加油站、雜貨店，還有，在好的一天，亞馬遜。

Sure, you'll probably lose money at first, but sell a few more and now you have the power

當然，一開始你可能會賠錢，但多賣幾個，現在你就有能力了。

Or, you can sell a few really expensive things.

或者，你可以賣掉一些很貴的東西。

Ever wondered why your town has like three mattress stores for every one person?

你有沒有想過為什麼你的城市每一個人就有三家床墊店？

They're always empty and yet somehow still keep the lights on.

它們總是空空如也，卻不知為何還能保持燈火通明。

Well, that's because a few feet of foam doesn't cost thousands, or even hundreds,

嗯，那是因為幾英尺的保麗龍不需要幾千，甚至幾百。

50, 60, 90 percent of a mattress is pure, king-sized profit.

一張床墊的50%、60%、90%是純利潤，特大號的利潤。

It only takes a few sales a month to stay in business.

一個月只要賣出幾單，就能維持生意。

But a few companies, the really, really successful ones, manage to do both.

但有少數公司，真正的，真正成功的公司，能做到這兩點。

If you can make hundreds of dollars on each item, sell it thousands of times an hour,

如果每件商品能賺幾百元，一小時就能賣出上千次。

and convince those same people to buy again in 12 months, AND make us want to line up

並說服這些人在12個月內再次購買，並使我們想排隊。

with a smile on our face for the privilege of doing it, well, now you have a $265 billion

臉上帶著微笑的特權，好吧，現在你有一個2650億美元的

The iPhone is, arguably, the most successful subscription service in history.

可以說，iPhone是歷史上最成功的訂閱服務。

You can bet Apple will announce a new model, or three, every September, like clockwork,

你可以打賭，蘋果每年9月都會像鐘錶一樣宣佈一款新機型，或者三款。

just as surely as you know they'll name it something weird.

就像你知道他們會給它起個奇怪的名字一樣。

The problem is, technology is getting really good.

問題是，技術真的越來越好了。

So good that a lot of people are thinking “Why do I need a new one?”

這麼好的東西，很多人都在想 "我為什麼要買新的？"

Some of us care about Portrait Mode and dual optical image stabilization, but, for most

我們中的一些人關心人像模式和雙光學圖像防抖，但是，對於大多數人來說，我們都會關心人像模式和雙光學圖像防抖。

people, checking Twitter and using WeChat is the same on the Phone XS as the X, and

人，在Phone XS上查看微博和使用微信和X一樣，而且。

You're invited to the blue bubble club regardless.

不管怎麼樣，你都會被邀請到藍泡泡俱樂部。

According to analysts, the average person waited three years to upgrade their smartphone

根據分析師的數據，平均每個人都要等三年才能升級智能手機。

Of course, phones are a little bit weird in this respect because so are humans.

當然，手機在這方面有點奇怪，因為人也是如此。

The iPhone isn't just a tool, it's a status symbol.

iPhone不僅僅是一個工具，更是一種身份的象徵。

According to researchers at the University of Chicago, the best predictors of wealth

根據芝加哥大學的研究人員，財富的最佳預測因素

in 1992 were: owning an automatic dishwasher, a fireplace, and oooh, a garage door opener.

在1992年的時候，擁有一臺自動洗碗機，一個壁爐，還有哦，一個車庫門開啟器。

Today, it's owning a passport, an iPhone, and iPad, which have a 70% chance of correctly

如今，擁有一本護照、一部iPhone和iPad，這三者的正確率達到70%。

Owning the newest model signals you have a grand of disposable income to spend every

擁有最新的車型，標誌著你有一千多萬的可支配收入，可以花在每一個項目上。

Add some AirPods and you won't even hear the sound of the money leaving your bank account.

加上一些AirPods，你甚至不會聽到錢離開銀行賬戶的聲音。

But that only works if this year's iPhone looks different from last, and Apple only

但這隻有在今年的iPhone外觀與去年不同的情況下才行得通，蘋果只有

really changes its design every other year.

真的是每隔一年就換一次設計。

People are losing their appetite for frequent upgrades, but Apple certainly hasn't lost

人們正在失去頻繁升級的胃口，但蘋果當然沒有失去

這就意味著，當然，價格會更高!

Selling half as many phones isn't such a problem if they're all twice as expensive.

如果手機的價格都是原來的兩倍，那麼賣一半的手機也不是這樣的問題。

The cheaper iPhone has slowly crept from $649, to 699, to 749, today.

更加便宜的iPhone從649美元，到699美元，再到今天的749美元，慢慢爬上。

The more expensive XS now starts at nine ninety-nine and goes all the way up to $1,449.

現在更貴的XS的起價是九十九元，一直到1449元。

Of course, that's only if you're lucky enough to live in the U.S.

當然，這只是在你有幸生活在美國的情況下。

To make sense of this, we need to answer the question: How expensive is the iPhone, really?

要想搞清楚這個問題，我們需要回答這個問題。iPhone到底有多貴？

There's plenty of back-and-forth on whether the iPhone is, quote, worth it, but what isn't

有很多的反反覆覆的iPhone是否, 報價, 值得, 但什麼是不

really debated is that, in general, it's higher-priced than most other smartphones

真正的爭論是，在一般情況下，它的價格比大多數其他智能手機更高

Being selective about which price segments it sells to is pretty much written in Apple's

有選擇地銷售給哪個價位段的產品，這在蘋果公司的產品中已經寫得差不多了。

There's no $300 MacBook not because it's impossible but because that's just not what

沒有300美元的MacBook，不是因為它不可能，而是因為這並不是

And with prices going up even higher, it would seem that's never been more true.

而隨著物價的進一步上漲，這似乎是再正確不過的了。

But sticker price isn't the best way to measure actual cost.

但貼牌價並不是衡量實際成本的最好方法。

Unless you pull a Black Mirror, they're still worth something in a year or two.

除非你拉個黑鏡，否則一兩年後他們還是很值錢的。

The price of something like a house accounts for how much it's expected to gain or lose

房子這種東西的價格佔了它的預期收益或損失的多少。

Usually, the structure itself depreciates - styles change and wood rots, but the land

通常情況下，結構本身會貶值--風格會改變，木頭會腐爛，但土地卻會貶值

Which, side note, is why tiny houses aren't investments.

這也從側面說明了為什麼小房子不是投資。

The land they sit on is often leased, not owned, and therefore, it only loses value.

他們所坐的土地往往是租賃的，而不是擁有的，是以，它只會失去價值。

Basically, you've just bought a house-shaped RV!

基本上，你剛剛買了一輛房子形狀的房車!

Anyway, unless your phone was signed by the ghost of Steve Jobs himself, it's more like

總之，除非你的手機是喬布斯的鬼魂親自簽名的，否則更像是