????創造一個猶如科幻小說的未來，即便能成功，也總是要花費比預期更長的時間。

????想象一下聯網家庭的樣子：安全攝像頭、車庫門和冰箱等日常設備都與因特網連接，并能用智能手機操控。科技公司已經宣揚這一理念好些年了，但該領域的進展卻十分有限。

????在一年一度的拉斯維加斯CES國際消費電子展上，科技界充分展現了他們對未來雄心勃勃的規劃。電子產品制造商、汽車廠商和娛樂公司的高管們都在賣力地宣揚他們的最新產品，或許有一些人最終會購買這些新玩意吧。

????事實證明，在有些年份，科技界的確發生了真正革命性的變化。比如2007年，蘋果公司推出iPhone，重新塑造了整個技術行業。而另一些年份則更像是一場追趕的游戲，各大公司都專注于困難卻重要的工作，以期望它們的整個產品線能夠踐行當初許下的諾言。（想一想3D電視）

????2015年會是哪一種呢？以下是值得期待的幾大趨勢。

????Creating a sci-fi future always takes longer than expected, if it happens at all.

????Consider the example of the connected home, in which everyday devices like security cameras, garage doors, and refrigerators are connected to the Internet and controlled from a smartphone. Companies have pushed the idea for several years, but have gained only limited traction.

????The technology industry’s ambitious road map will be on fully display this week at the International Consumer Electronics Show, the annual gadget industry rally in Las Vegas. Executives from electronics makers, car manufacturers, and entertainment companies will make splashy sales pitches for their latest products and, maybe, some people will eventually buy them.

????Some years in tech turn out to be truly revolutionary. In 2007, Apple introduced the iPhone and reshaped the technology industry. Other years are more a game of catch-up, when companies focus on the difficult but important job of making entire categories of products live up to their original promise. (See: 3-D home television.)

????What kind of year will 2015 be? Here’s what to expect.

????蘋果手表即將面世

????蘋果智能手表將在接下來幾個月內面世——在聯網計時工具尚未普及之前，這款產品無疑最令人期待。制造商們一直在介紹這種戴在手腕或身體其他部位的微型計算機，聲稱它們就是電子設備業的未來。然而到目前為止，公眾并不買賬。349美元起售的蘋果手表也許是救贖這項技術的最后機會。當然，就改良市面上表現不佳的電子產品，讓它們變得更加方便使用而言，蘋果已經取得過許多成功——比如智能手機和平板電腦，那么為何不試試智能手表呢？這款產品對蘋果公司首席執行官蒂姆?庫克具有特殊意義。因為到目前為止，他一直都在倚賴史蒂夫?喬布斯打造的各種產品。無論是好是壞，蘋果手表將成為庫克親生的孩子。

????Countdown to Apple Watch

????Apple's debut of its smartwatch within the next few months is the biggest hope yet to popularize the Internet-connected time pieces. Manufacturers have long described the mini-computers worn on the wrist—or anywhere else on the body—as the future. But so far the public has been unconvinced. Apple's Watch, at $349, may be the last chance to redeem the technology. Apple, of course, has had plenty of success taking existing but clunky electronics—i.e. smartphones and tablets —and making them easy to use. Why not smartwatches? The stakes are high for Apple CEO Tim Cook, who until now, has been riding high on a portfolio of product lines developed by his predecessor, Steve Jobs. Smartwatches will be entirely Cook's baby, for better or for worse.