遙控器革命初現端倪
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????三星電子（Samsung Electronics）副總裁喬?斯丁齊亞諾最近在一次新聞發布會上談到智能電視的未來時，很少有人能料到他會談到臥室里最不引人注目的設備——遙控器。“到目前為止，遙控器的功能在過去50年里基本沒什么變化，”他在介紹一系列創新性的新功能之前這樣說道。 ????斯丁齊亞諾的一番話使遙控器突然成了人們關注的焦點，它很可能是家庭娛樂設施里最后一個還沒有經歷過全面的、根本性變化的設備了。盡管現在每個家庭平均擁有多達4個遙控器，每個遙控器上面都布滿了成排的按鈕和服務，令人摸不著頭腦。但是，由于受到生產成本、基礎設施和相互矛盾的技術標準的制約，搖控器一直沒有引起人們的廣泛關注。搖控器經歷的變革大多都是漸進式的。但這種情況可能要開始發生變化了。 ????遙控器為何一直遭到創新的冷落？曾任Boxee TV首席設計師的邁克爾?阿爾瓦雷茨表示：“與配套的電視機或機頂盒相比，遙控器總是處于從屬地位。”Boxee TV是一個先進的家庭影院PC軟件應用，在阿爾瓦雷茨擔任首席設計師期間，該公司研發出了它的旗艦型機頂盒和雙面遙控器。“由于廠商把主要的生產成本都用來保障其競爭性功能的主要部件，因此搖控器的創新就被擱置起來，導致遙控器和電視的關系停滯不前。” ????但是遙控器剛問世的時候，情況并不是這樣的。世界上第一支無線遙控器是由齊尼斯無線電公司（Zenith Radio Corporation）于1956年生產的，由羅伯特?阿德勒設計制造。當時這個名叫“齊尼思空間控制器”（Zenith Space Command）的產品堪稱是個奇跡。它提供了一個簡單的界面，與當時人們看電視的習慣保持了一致。隨著這支遙控器的誕生，一種演變也隨之開始：消費者第一次有了自由選擇頻道的權利。調查發現，自從觀眾可以坐著遙控電視，25%的觀眾一看到片頭片尾的字幕開始滾動就會換頻道。這種現象也導致電視臺的節目發生了相應的演變。等到世紀之交時，在多重系統的壓力下，遙控器的設計已經有些跟不上時代步伐。這不僅是因為設備的成倍增加（比如電視和有線機頂盒各需要一個遙控器），還因為生產和服務提供商的分離，導致遙控器的按鈕數量出現了不可遏止的增長。 |
????When Joe Stinziano, senior vice president of Samsung Electronics, took the stage recently at a press event on the future of smart TV, few might have expected him to talk about the quietest device in the living room: the remote control. "Until now, the remote control has basically stayed the same for 50 years," Stinziano said, before proceeding to unveil a bevy of innovative new features. ????Indeed, Stinziano cast a spotlight on a device that may very well be the last piece of home entertainment equipment to undergo broad, fundamental change. Hampered by manufacturing costs, infrastructure, and competing technical standards, the remote control has gotten little attention even though the average household now has four of them, each with its own confusing array of buttons and services. What changes remote controls have gone through have mostly been evolutionary. That may be starting to change. ????Why has the remote control been a long-time victim of innovation? "It's always come secondary to the television or set top box it's been paired with," says Michel Alvarez who was lead designer when Boxee TV, a progressive home theater PC software application, developed its flagship set-top box and dual-sided remote. "As manufacturers continued to invest production costs on making sure the main unit delivered on its competitive features, remote control innovation sat on the back burner, ultimately plateauing the relationship between the remote and the television." ????It didn't start that way. The first wireless remote was a marvel, introduced by Zenith Radio Corporation in 1956 and engineered by Robert Adler. Called the "Zenith Space Command," it offered a simple interface, consistent with consumer habits for watching television at the time. With its introduction an evolution happened: choice or remotes was granted to consumers for the first time. Findings emerged that began to shape programming: 25% of viewers changed the channel once the credits started rolling since they could change the channel sitting down. Yet by the turn of the century, the remote's design faltered under the weight of multiple systems. Not only did it multiply by device -- while one remote shipped with a TV, another shipped with the cable box -- but the separation of labor and service provider caused an unstoppable multiplicity of buttons. |
