英语故事丨为了“戒手机”，他们对自己有多狠？买个盒子锁起来！

All boxed in, and free at last

自律盒换自由

Tired of a life controlled by their mobile phones, many young people are resorting to drastic measures to kick the bug.

许多年轻人厌倦了被手机支配的生活，开始采取极端方式解决这一问题。

Are you always looking at your mobile phone as you're walking, playing with it as you're studying, and reluctant to put it down as you go to bed? Few are as blighted with this affliction as Gen-Zers, but the good news is that many seem to be intent on working out how to overcome it.

你是否经常边走路边看手机，学习的时候玩手机，睡前迟迟不肯放下手机？很少有哪代人会像Z世代这样遭受这种折磨，但好消息是，很多人似乎在努力研究如何克服这种手机瘾。

blight /blaɪt/：损害

affliction /əˈflɪkʃn/：折磨

A discussion group called the Screen-Free Project set up a year or so ago on Douban, a popular online community that hosts content related to celebrities, pop culture and entertainment in China, now has a little more than 33,000 members. On it members pledge to "quit" their mobile phones.

大约一年前，一个名为“远离屏幕计划”的讨论小组在豆瓣上成立，目前有超过3.3万名成员，他们立下誓言，要“戒掉”手机。

That generally does not mean they will abandon their phone altogether, but it does mean they will seek greatly to cut down their use of it, one of the basic steps being to log in to the site each day to record how much use they have made of the phone over the previous 24 hours.

这并不意味着他们要完全抛掉手机，而是会大大减少手机使用，其基本操作之一是，每天打卡记录自己过去24小时使用手机的时长。

The China Security Perception Report (2021) by the Internet Development Research Institution of Peking University says half of internet users say they are keen to escape the internet and stay away from mobile phones. That is a very tall order, particularly when one considers how ubiquitous cashless payments are in China. The difficulty of the task is perfectly expressed in the joke about giving up tobacco: "Quitting smoking is a piece of cake. I do it once a year."

北京大学互联网研究发展中心发布的《中国大安全感知报告（2021）》称，50%的人想要逃离网络、远离手机。考虑到中国无处不在的电子支付，远离手机是一项非常艰难的任务。有多难呢？一个关于戒烟的小笑话能完美阐释：“戒烟很容易，我每年戒一次。”

be a tall order: 难以办到；要求苛刻

Just as smokers have been provided with all kinds of gimmicks, gadgets and regimens over the years to help them kick the habit, those who regard themselves as addicted to their phones are getting in on the act.

就像近年来供吸烟者们选用的各种戒烟噱头、工具和治疗方案，自认有手机瘾的人们也开始行动起来。

gimmick /ˈɡɪmɪks/：花招，把戏，噱头gadget /ˈɡædʒɪt/：小配件regimen /ˈredʒɪmən/ 疗程；养生之道；摄食制度

The a-la-mode gadget that seems to have everyone at least talking if not necessarily acting is the mobile phone isolation box. Users simply put their mobile phone in the box and set a time lock that will bar them from having access to the phone for a set time.

其中一个时髦小玩意儿就是手机隔离盒，即便不是所有人都在用它，也赚到了相当高的讨论度。用户只需将手机放入盒子，设置时间锁，在规定时间内，用户就无法使用手机了。

a-la-mode：流行的，时髦的

手机隔离盒

One of its users who enthuses about the box said she bought it as she was preparing for the postgraduate entrance examination. She reckoned that the device, costing no more than 100 yuan ($15.71), was well worth the outlay.

一位手机隔离盒的拥趸表示，她是为了准备考研买的，只花了不到100元，可以说是物超所值。

Lin Tianqi, a junior student at Beijing Technology and Business University, says she bought the isolation box recently on the online e-commerce site Taobao.

林天琪（音）是北京工商大学的大三学生，她最近在淘宝上买了这个手机隔离盒。

Once the time that was set has expired, a beep sounds, no doubt, must be like music to anyone suffering from withdrawal symptoms. Lin has affixed several eye-catching stickers to the box aimed at boosting her morale: "God helps those who help themselves" and "The harder you work, the luckier you are". The stickers help remind her of the need to face up to reality, she says.

设定的时间一到，手机隔离盒会发出哔哔声，对于任何经受手机戒断反应折磨的人来说，这就是天籁之音。林天琪在隔离盒上贴了几张醒目的标签，为自己加油打气：“自助者天助”，“越努力，越幸运”。她表示，这些句子会提醒自己要面对现实。

Though using a physical box to reduce mobile phone use may seem like cracking open a walnut with a sledgehammer, those marketing it appear to be on to a good thing. Those willing to pay 100 yuan for it are mainly students and office workers, says Xianfeng Technology, one of the sellers on Taobao.

尽管用一个物理盒子来减少手机的使用，听起来就像是杀鸡用牛刀，但对于卖家来说，这可正合他们心意。淘宝卖家“先锋科技”表示，愿意花100元买这种隔离盒的主要是学生和上班族。

be on to a good thing：过上舒心的日子；找到好工作crack open a walnut with a sledgehammer：大锤敲核桃（杀鸡用牛刀）

A search of the phrase shouji geli he (mobile phone isolation box) on Taobao brings up several stores whose products are similar in what they do, namely requiring the phone to be placed in a box secured by a time lock.

在淘宝上搜索“手机隔离盒”，会发现多家店铺，它们的产品相似，都是用定时锁把手机锁在盒子里。

After a phone is placed in some of the boxes, the phone cannot be used or manipulated other than charging it, but some boxes have a panel on the outside that signals when there are incoming calls, including WeChat audio, which can be answered.

当把手机放在盒子里后，除充电外不能使用或操作手机。但有些盒子外部配有控制板，可以显示并且接听包括微信语音在内的来电。 

A description page on Taobao says these boxes can be adapted to almost all types of mobile phones on the market. The locking time generally ranges from one minute to 12 hours, and the price is generally about 100-200 yuan.

淘宝上的一个商品描述页面显示，这些手机隔离盒能适配市面上几乎所有型号的手机，支持的锁定时间一般在1分钟到12小时不等，价格在100-200元左右。

The owner of Xianfeng Technology says: "Our main customers are students, such as those preparing for postgraduate studies, or middle and high school students to a lesser extent. They usually ask for engraving on the box when buying, such as some inspirational quotes or the target colleges they want to be admitted to.

先锋科技的老板说：“我们的主要客户是学生，像考研的，或者初高中生，他们在购买时通常会要求在盒子上刻字，比如一些励志名言或者想要考取的目标院校等。”

"Some parents who feel their children are wasting time on Douyin and ruining their studies are also buying them."

“一些家长觉得孩子浪费太多时间刷抖音，影响了学习，也会购买这种隔离盒。”

Market prospects for the store's boxes are good, Xianfeng Technology says.

谈及手机隔离盒的市场前景，先锋科技表示非常看好。

"As people become heavily reliant on mobile phones, many are realizing they need something that can keep them away from them, and this physical box is much better and direct than software on phones."

“现在大家对手机的依赖程度越来越高，很多人意识到需要借助一些工具来帮助自己远离手机，手机隔离盒作为一种物理隔离手段，比限制手机使用的软件效果要好，也更直接。”

Xiangfeng's after-sales comment section is filled with positive comment from buyers who say the box has helped them become more self-disciplined.

在先锋科技的售后评论区中，很多消费者都对手机隔离盒做出了好评，认为其帮助自己变得自律。

The boxes sold by another store, Swift Technology, allow users to respond to emergencies. The clerk in this store says that those who place orders are mainly students, and about 1,000 orders are being placed a month.

还有一家名为“迅达科技”的店铺，也上线了多款手机隔离盒。产品本身有强制开锁的机会，以应对紧急情况。店员表示，下单的消费者主要是学生，每月大约有1000个订单。

However, Lin says, because the lock time is set by users, whether they can achieve their goal depends on the individual. A five-hour lockup is too harsh, she says, but at the other end of the spectrum, one of her friends locks the box for just 30 minutes, something that Lin says suggests the classmate is deluding herself.

但林天琪表示，由于锁定时间是自行设置的，能否达到目标其实因人而异。她说，5个小时的锁定时间太苛刻了，但另一个极端是，她的一个朋友只设置了30分钟，林天琪觉得这位同学在自欺欺人。

A recent buyer, Shen Yichen, says she felt that with the pandemic many people's reliance on mobile phones had greatly increased.

一位近期购买了隔离盒的用户沈怡辰（音）说，疫情之后，她感觉到很多人对手机的依赖程度大幅提升。

"Earlier I saw the box on Taobao, but at that time there were very few companies making them, and they basically used a square real box with a lock to lock the phone."

“我之前在淘宝上看到过手机隔离盒，但当时做这类产品的商家很少，基本也都是用一个方盒子加一把锁的方式，简单粗暴地将手机锁起来。”

They are now much better, she says.

她说，如今手机隔离盒已经进步很多了。

In addition to the isolation box, there are many products or services on the market that are said to help people cut down on mobile phone use. In 2019, BlackBerry phones, once a prestige communications tool, became a topic of conversation because of their lack of interconnectivity.

除了手机隔离盒，市面上还有许多产品或服务声称可以帮助人们减少手机使用。2019年，曾经风靡一时的黑莓手机曾经因为连不上网引发好一阵讨论。

Suddenly the very thing that had led BlackBerry to the edge of commercial oblivion became a huge plus, and it became the first choice of young people wanting to wean themselves from mobile phones. However, the drawback in China is the ubiquity of mobile payments. A BlackBerry or an old Nokia phone cannot adapt to this basic need, and for the moment the smart isolation box seems to be the ideal choice.

突然间，这让黑莓手机被市场淘汰的特性，如今却变成了优点，成为了想要戒手机的年轻人的首选。然而，其劣势在于，在移动支付全面普及的中国，黑莓手机或老式诺基亚手机无法适应这一基本需求。就目前而言，智能隔离盒似乎是理想的选择。

However, Liang Wenyu, another college student, sneers at these "flashy" attempts.

然而，另一名大学生梁文宇（音）对这些“华而不实”的尝试嗤之以鼻。

"It is meaningless to replace all of them, and regardless of the effectiveness of the isolation box, you might as well lock yourself up," he says. "As simple as that."

“换手机没有意义，且不论手机隔离盒的效果如何，你还不如把自己关起来，”他说，“就这么简单。”

"I can understand why they attach these blood pumping stickers on the box－because they lack discipline. How about simply taking back your time. Self-disciplined people are bound to succeed without such gimmicks."

“我理解他们为什么在盒子上贴这些打鸡血的贴纸，因为缺乏自律。可是为什么不直接好好利用时间呢？自律的人不需要这种噱头也一定会成功。”

编辑：左卓 周婵

记者：张磊

实习生：张夕 程程 

录音：Stephanie Stone