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Once upon a time, flip phones were the ultimate status symbol. Whipping out a Motorola StarTAC or a RAZR meant you had made it, that you were, as they said, a 'playah.' Rappers plugged them in bling-laden lyrics. Fashion's Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana touted them in ad campaigns. During Hollywood awards season, savvy publicists tucked them into VIP swag bags.
從前，翻蓋手機是社會地位的終極象征。掏出一部摩托羅拉(Motorola) StarTAC或RAZR表示你很行，也就是說如大家所言，你是一個“大玩家”。說唱歌手紛紛把它們寫進他們滿是“布鈴布鈴”聲音的歌詞中。時尚界的多梅尼科・多爾切(Domenico Dolce)與斯特凡諾・嘉班納(Stefano Gabbana)也在廣告宣傳中吹捧它們。在好萊塢的頒獎季，精明的公關人員則把它們塞進VIP禮包中。
But ever since Motorola dropped the price of the once-luxury RAZR a year after its 2004 debut to make it affordable to a mass market, the luster of the flip has been fading. Warp ahead to the 21st century, and these gadgets now carry social stigmas in most circles. Open a clamshell and the perception is that you are elderly (in need of a giant keypad), poor (on a pay-as-you-go cellular plan) or a criminal (see 'Sons of Anarchy,' 'Breaking Bad').
然而，摩托羅拉在RAZR上市一年后下調了這款于2004年發布、曾屬奢侈品的手機的價格，以便讓普通大眾也能買得起它，此后翻蓋手機的吸引力便逐漸消退。進入21世紀后，現在這些設備在大多數圈子中都被貼上了社會污名標記。打開一部翻蓋手機給人的感受是你年紀大（所以你需要一個大鍵盤），人窮（使用的是手機預充值計劃），或者是個罪犯（參見《混亂之子》(Sons of Anarchy)和《絕命毒師》(Breaking Bad)）。
Yet there might be some battery life left in the flip phone after all. Mega-power players in the worlds of sports, fashion, film and finance still pledge allegiance. Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck, 24, sports a five-year-old Samsung, while actress Kate Beckinsale, a star of the future-forward 'Total Recall' remake, has professed her love for an LG. Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour carries a rudimentary Pantech (in addition to an iPhone). Warren Buffett showed off his Nokia flip to Piers Morgan on CNN ('This is the one Alexander Graham Bell gave me,' Mr. Buffett joked). And Jerry Jones, billionaire owner of the Dallas Cowboys, created a media frenzy when he was 'outed' for brandishing a clamshell. 'I don't have any butt-dialing with that thing,' he explained on 'CBS This Morning.'
盡管如此，翻蓋手機或許最終還留存了一些生命力。體育界、時尚界、影視界和金融界的一些超級巨頭依然是這種手機的忠實粉絲。印第安納波利斯小馬隊(Indianapolis Colts)24歲的四分衛安德魯・拉克(Andrew Luck)使用的是一部用了五年的三星(Samsung)翻蓋手機。翻拍版科幻影片《全面回憶》(Total Recall)的女星凱特・貝金賽爾(Kate Beckinsale)也宣稱自己喜歡一部LG的翻蓋手機。美國版《Vogue》主編安娜・溫圖爾(Anna Wintour)也手拿一部基本款Pantech（另一部是iPhone）。沃倫・巴菲特(Warren Buffett)在CNN上節目時向皮爾斯・摩根(Piers Morgan)展示了他的諾基亞(Nokia)翻蓋手機（他還開玩笑說：“這是亞歷山大・格雷厄姆・貝爾(Alexander Graham Bell)給我的”。）達拉斯牛仔隊的億萬富翁老板杰里・瓊斯(Jerry Jones)因夸耀一部翻蓋手機 “被指過時”，還因此引發了媒體的狂熱報道。他在《CBS今早》(CBS This Morning)欄目解釋道：“使用這種手機的話，我就不會因為坐到它而撥出電話了。”
In many cases, these cellular stalwarts aren't opting for clamshells out of irony or nostalgia. The choice is utilitarian. 'The flip phone design was created to address many concerns of the consumer at that time: protection, pocketability, voice quality and performance,' said Motorola Mobility Senior Vice President Jim Wicks, who designed the RAZR. 'What is nice about the flip is that it protects the screen, which was and continues to be a top issue for consumers.'
在許多情況下，這些翻蓋手機的堅定支持者并不是出于反諷或懷舊心理而選擇它們，而是出于對實用性的注重。摩托羅拉移動業務高級副總裁、RAZR的設計者吉姆・威克斯(Jim Wicks)說：“我們設計翻蓋手機是為了解決消費者當時眾多關心的問題：（屏幕）保護、便攜性、音質及性能。翻蓋手機的好處是它能保護屏幕，這以前是而且會繼續是消費者最關心的問題。”
By certain measures, basic flip phones outperform their smarter brethren. The retro models tend to be more likely to survive exposure to dust and moisture. Battery life is often better (up to 14 days of standby time for the Pantech Breeze III, for example, compared with 10 days for the iPhone 5c, according to their manufacturers). Big-button keypads are easier to dial on than glass. And their microphones sit closer to the mouth, which can result in more intelligible speech.
按某些標準衡量，基礎款翻蓋手機的表現還超過了智能手機。這些懷舊機型往往更能抵抗住灰塵和潮濕環境。它們的電池續航時間往往也更長（例如，據它們各自的制造商稱，Pantech Breeze III的待機時間長達14天，而iPhone 5c只有10天）。帶大按鈕的鍵盤也比玻璃屏更容易撥號，而且它們的麥克風距嘴更近，會使通話聲音更加清晰。
Carter Hooper, a New Orleans-based advertising agency creative director and self-described cellphone aficionado, holds the original RAZR in especially high regard. 'At long last I could have something that was even remotely like the communicators on 'Star Trek,' ' he said, recalling his initial reaction to the phone. Similarly, Sean Hollister, a senior reporter for the online magazine the Verge, waxed nostalgic for these devices' trappings. 'There is nothing quite like the physical satisfaction of flipping open a phone,' he said. 'There's also the lack of distractions when your phone is dumb rather than smart, so that it doesn't annoy you all the time.'
新奧爾良廣告公司創意總監、自稱手機迷的卡特・胡珀(Carter Hooper)就對最早的RAZR推崇備至。他回憶說自己對這款手機的第一反應是：“我終于能有一點點像《星際迷航》(Star Trek)中的發報機的東西了?！蓖瑯拥?，在線雜志《The Verge》的高級記者肖恩・霍利斯特(Sean Hollister)對這些設備的一些小機關也很是懷念。他說：“打開翻蓋手機給身體帶來的滿足感是其他所有事情所做不到的。如果你的手機不是智能機，你也就少了讓你分心的東西，所以它不會一直煩你?！?/div>
For the fashion conscious, clamshells also have a certain cachet. Despite the seemingly constant rollout of slightly updated iPhones and Android models, novelty, thy name isn't smartphone. It's a flip that makes you a renegade, an iconoclast.
對于注重時尚的人，翻蓋手機也有令人喜愛的特定品質。盡管iPhone和安卓(Android)似乎在不斷推出略有升級的機型，但是新奇，你的名字不是智能手機，而是讓你成為反叛者、反主流之人的翻蓋手機。
Committing to one these days doesn't require swearing off the Internet. Even the most rudimentary clamshell models -- such as the Samsung Rugby III, the Pantech Breeze III and the LG Revere 2 -- offer basic Web connectivity. For those who want it all, there are promising signs of a clamshell smartphone movement. Samsung recently launched its Android-powered Hennessy (featuring dual touch-screens on the inside and out) and W2014 flip phones.
現如今，專注使用翻蓋手機并非就要你放棄互聯網。即使是最基礎的翻蓋手機――如三星Rugby III、Pantech的 Breeze III和LG的Revere 2――都能提供基礎的聯網功能。對于所有功能都想要的人，有充滿希望的跡象表明翻蓋手機會出現智能化趨勢。前不久三星發布了搭載安卓系統的Hennessy手機（配備內外雙觸屏）和W2014手機。
These Android models are currently aimed at the Chinese market, but there are rumblings of a Stateside launch. 'There will be a place for flip phones in today's world for the foreseeable future,' said Brad Molen, senior mobile editor at the technology website Engadget. 'Flip phones aren't going away -- they're just taking different forms.'
這些安卓機型目前都針對中國市場，但有傳言稱它們會在美國發布?？萍季W站Engadget的高級移動資訊編輯布拉德・莫倫(Brad Molen)認為：“在當今世界，翻蓋手機在可預見的未來會有一席之地。翻蓋手機不會消失――它們只是換上了不同的形式而已。”
