????DIY定制有可能成為消費科技界的下一個大事件嗎？

????就在柏林國際電子消費品展覽會開幕之前，宏基公司最近發布了一款名為“Revo Build系列”的新型“模塊化”個人電腦。這種PC允許消費者像拼裝樂高積木一樣組裝自己的臺式電腦。

????只需把預制好的“積木”一塊塊地壘起來，消費者就能輕松組裝出一臺自己的電腦。位于最下面的是電腦核心組件，包括8GB的RAM、SD卡槽、顯示端口和以太網等等，消費者只要花幾秒鐘把一塊硬盤“積木”放在它上面，一臺主機就這樣“攢”成了。

????如果用戶想添加揚聲器或麥克風等功能，只要在上面再壘一塊音頻“積木”就可輕松搞定。用戶也可以再往上壘一塊用于無線充電的“積木”。這些積木可以繼續垂直堆疊，最后看起來就像用樂高積木堆起來的一座小樓一樣。

????宏基Revo Build系列個人電腦是時下正流行的“模塊化”產品的一種。這種模塊化產品的出現，使消費者可以快捷地升級機器，而不用購買全套昂貴的新設備。

????模塊化設計思路在制造業中早已屢見不鮮。無論是汽車、電腦還是其它產品的制造，總是離不了大量標準化部件。但消費者卻從未如此大范圍地享受模塊化的好處。以前要想升級一臺電腦的話，要由一名專業的技術人員打開機箱，用可兼容的備件替換需要升級的零件，這個過程可能要花費幾小時之久。

????由于這番工序非常復雜，加上往往還會出現這樣那樣的問題，致使很多人覺得升級硬件的風險太高了。因此，買到新的就扔掉舊的逐漸成為一種風尚，喜新厭舊成了主流。不得不說，正是這種懶于升級現有硬件的消費習慣，才為科技界的發展提供了不竭動力，使各大科技公司能夠定期推出新產品。

????盡管如此，模塊化的發展趨勢依然沒有中斷，走在最前面的正是科技巨頭谷歌公司。2014年，谷歌以29億美元的價格將摩托羅拉賣給了聯想，但該公司設法保留了一項叫做Project Ara的技術。

????Project Ara首先由摩托羅拉于2013年推出，該項目致力于研發一種模塊化智能手機，使用戶可以輕松地更換攝像頭等部件。這樣一來，消費者如果購買了一臺Ara設備，就可以選擇他們自己想要的部件安裝到手機里，用了一段時間后，也隨時可以購買新部件來取代舊部件。也就是說，消費者手里使用的始終是同一臺設備，由于它使用了標準化輸入，包括谷歌在內的任何一家公司都可以設計能插入智能手機的部件。

????Project Ara的系統工藝負責人拉法·卡瑪爾戈告訴《財富》：“Project Ara旨在構建一個像軟件生態系統一樣開放、模塊化的移動硬件生態系統。它有助于開發者更快地將技術研發成果投放市場。另外，這個平臺和它的廣大合作伙伴也能為全球用戶提供新的選擇和可能。”

????這樣一個生態系統將在相當程度上促進整個行業的變革。如今，很多公司都在花大量時間從內到外構建整個產品，但如果一個模塊化的生態系統能夠發展起來，很多公司就會集中精力研發可插入到設備上的小型平價零部件。這樣一來，它們的成本會有所降低，消費者也可以從自己選擇的公司那里購買最心儀的功能。

????Phonebloks是另一家希望整個行業盡早接受模塊化產品的公司。該公司稱，其目標是最終減少電子產品的浪費，在科技業中培養一種讓用戶對設備有更多控制權的環境。

????Phonebloks公司技術總監蓋文·達珀爾對《財富》表示：“模塊化能夠給人們選擇的機會，并延長產品的生命周期，從而減少電子浪費。如果執行得比較好，它還能讓用戶選擇自己的個人配置。如果使用了開放標準，它還能使人們更容易接觸到創新成果。”

????模塊化也能為兒童開啟一個新世界。比如一家名叫One Education的小型社會企業正在研發一種名叫Infinity的模塊化電腦，孩子們可以輕松地將一塊觸屏平板電腦變成一臺筆記本電腦，也可以便捷地添加攝像頭功能（以及其它核心組件）。該公司已經啟動了一項計劃，旨在幫助包括發達國家和發展中國家在內的各國兒童獲得接觸科技的機會。

????One Education的官網稱：“我們的任務不是為股東賺更多的收益，我們也沒有股東。我們的任務是在數碼鴻溝出現之前，就阻止它形成。”它所說的“數碼鴻溝”指的是各國人民接觸科技的機會不均等。“這就是我們為什么要研制一種通用型電腦。每銷售一臺Infinity電腦和模塊，都可以為Infinity電腦進入那些沒有電腦的學校和社區做出貢獻。”

????然而電子設備模塊化并不必然會取得成功。況且目前Project Ara和宏基Revo Build系列都未上市。橫亙在兩家公司面前的，還有整個行業根深蒂固的傳統：即由企業來決定一個產品用什么元件，而消費者只有極少的控制權。

????但這并不意味著谷歌等企業沒有繼續探索。實際上，谷歌對模塊化的期望很高。

????谷歌在Project Ara的網站上指出：“智能手機是我們生活中能力最強大、也是和我們聯系最緊密的物品。但至于它是怎樣生產出來的，它能干什么，長什么樣子，我們大多數人對此是沒有發言權的。而且目前全球還有50億人沒有智能手機。如果你能根據自己的愿望，選擇自己的手機具備哪些功能，讓它像一張創意畫布一樣講述你自己的故事，是不是很美妙？我們推出的Project Ara，就是要為60億人提供個性化的設計。”（財富中文網）

譯者：樸成奎

審校：任文科

????Is DIY customization the next big thing in the consumer tech world?

????Ahead of the IFA consumer electronics confab in Berlin, Acer recently announced a new “modular” PC, called the Revo Build Series. The PC lets consumers build their own desktop computer LEGO-style.

????Consumers can build their own computer by stacking pre-made “blocks” one on top of another. In a matter of seconds, consumers can swap out a hard drive for a storage block by simply placing it on top of the computer’s core block, which includes 8GB of RAM, SD card slot, DisplayPort and Ethernet.

????For example, users can add features like speakers and microphones to their computer by stacking an audio block on top of the computer’s base, while another separate block would allow wireless charging. The blocks would continued to be stacked vertically and, in the end, appear just like a toy Lego tower.

????The Acer Revo Build Series is part of a growing trend of “modular” products that offer gadget owners the ability to quickly upgrade their machines without having to buy new expensive devices.

????Modularity is commonplace in manufacturing where standard components are used to build vehicles and PCs, among other products. However, modularity has never been offered to consumers on such a major scale. Historically, in order to upgrade a computer, tech experts would need to break open a PC and swap out its parts with compatible supplies, which could take hours.

????The complexity of the job and the potential pitfalls left many determining that the risk was too high. Instead, a culture of throwing out old machines and buying new, upgraded alternatives has become the norm. Indeed, the upgrade lifecycle has proven to be the lifeblood of the technology industry, allowing companies to sell new products on a regular basis.

????Despite that, the modularity trend continues to march forward and tech giant Google is leading the charge.

????When Google sold Motorola to Lenovo in 2014 for $2.9 billion, the company negotiated a deal to keep a technology called Project Ara within its ranks.

????Project Ara, which was first unveiled by Motorola in 2013, hopes to create a modular smartphone that allows users to quickly swap out components, like a camera, with ease. Consumers would buy a Project Ara device and pick and choose the components they want included in their phone. They can then also buy new components to replace old ones at a later date and time. All the while keeping the same device and using a standardized input that would allow any company—not just Google—to design components that plug into the smartphone.

????“Project Ara seeks to create an open, modular, mobile hardware ecosystem much like the software ecosystem,” Rafa Camargo, systems engineering lead for Project Ara, told Fortune. “Such an advance would allow developers to bring their technological developments to market faster. Together, the platform and partners would create new choices and possibilities for users worldwide.”

????Such an ecosystem could dramatically change the industry. Today, many companies spend a lot of time building entire products, but if a new, modular ecosystem develops, many firms could instead focus on building smaller, less expensive components that could be plugged into a device. Their costs would be lower and consumers would pick the features they want most from the companies of their choosing.

????Phonebloks is another company that is hoping to see the industry embrace modular products. The organization says its goal is to ultimately reduce electronic waste and foster an environment in the technology industry that allows for more user control over devices.

????“Modular has the potential to give the opportunity of choice to the people and enables for longer product life cycles, thereby reducing (electronic) waste,” Gawin Dapper, chief technology officer at Phonebloks, toldFortune. “When executed well, it also lets users choose their personal configuration and when using open standards, it also makes innovation more approachable.”

????Modularity could also open a new world for children. One Education, a small social enterprise is building a modular computer called Infinity that makes it easy for children to turn a touch screen tablet into a notebook, as well as add camera functionality (and other core components). The organization says it has also initiated a program to help children access technology both in developed countries and emerging markets.

????“Our mission is not to bolster returns to shareholders, we have none. Our mission is to prevent the digital divide before it forms,” the organization says on its website, referring to inequality in access to technology between countries. “That’s why we created a computer that is universal. Every Infinity and module sale contributes to the distribution of Infinity computers to schools and communities around the world who would otherwise go without.”

????Still, modularity success isn’t guaranteed and neither Project Ara nor the Acer Revo Build Series has launched just yet. Both companies are also competing against a technology industry that has long clung to the idea of companies deciding a product’s components, leaving consumers with little control.

????However that doesn’t mean Google and the others aren’t trying. Indeed, Google is aiming high with modularity.

????“The smartphone is one of the most empowering and intimate objects in our lives. Yet most of us have little say in how the device is made, what it does, and how it looks, and 5 billion of us don’t have one,” Google says on its Project Ara website. “What if you could make thoughtful choices about exactly what your phone does, and use it as a creative canvas to tell your own story? Introducing Project Ara. Designed exclusively for 6 billion people.”