Electronics Among Most Popular Gifts This Year

This is the VOA Special English Technology Report.

Electronics were among the most requested gifts this holiday season. The Consumer Electronics Association has studied holiday gift buying in the United States for the past eighteen years. Jim Barry is a spokesman for the CEA. We spoke with him last week, just before many Americans exchanged Christmas gifts. He said buyers this year planned to spend a little more than they did last year.

JIM BARRY: "And, what they said they were going to buy, the top five were - tablet computers, laptops, TVs, e-readers and video games. And that, as it turns out, here as we get close to Christmas, is what people are actually buying."

Tablet computers were the most popular electronic gift this year. Laptop computers finished second. Apple released its iPad 2 tablet computer in March. The company is expected to release the iPad 3 next year. Jim Barry says the iPad continues to lead the way in the tablet market.

JIM BARRY: "iPads are the leader in tablet computers, and tablet computers are the top of the list of what folks said they were going to buy this year. And, probably north of eighty percent of the tablets being sold up until now have been Apple iPads."

But, Mister Barry says that is starting to change. He says there are now more choices and less costly tablets available. They include the new Kindle Fire from Amazon-dot-com. E-readers were number three on the CEA's holiday gift wish list this year. Mr. Barry says that came as a surprise to more than a few people.

JIM BARRY: "Some folks thought that the popularity and success of the tablet computer would mean sales of e-book readers would go down. Well that hasn't happened. Sales of e-book readers have more than doubled this year. We're buying lots more. The leaders there continue to be the Kindle from Amazon and the Nook from Barnes and Noble, along with the e-reader from Sony."

Amazon released its Kindle Fire just in time for Christmas. The new Kindle is a touchscreen tablet computer. Unlike the earlier e-reader, this one is in color and it lets users explore the World Wide Web.

The Kindle Fire sells for one hundred ninety nine dollars. This is several hundred dollars less than the iPad. However, it is about the same price people paid last year for the Kindle 3G Wireless. So the big question on a lot of people's minds this year was whether or not to wait for the price to come down.

JIM BARRY: "This is the challenge of the early adopter. You know one of the great things about consumer electronics is that the prices get lower as the stuff gets better. And that's not true of automobiles, or furniture or houses, and so forth. So as the prices get lower, if you bought earlier you may feel a little bit of that ‘well I wish I had waited.'"

Mr. Barry says falling prices are a major plus for electronics sales.

JIM BARRY: "That's one of the reasons why consumer electronics devices - TVs and everything else really - do relatively well, even in this type of difficult economy."

He gives another reason why electronics were popular as Christmas gifts.

JIM BARRY: "They're really cool so you're pretty much guaranteed that if you give one of these things to someone as a gift, they're going to be happy they got it."

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电子产品是这个假期里被要求最多的礼物,美国消费者电子协会研究了过去18年的美国节日礼物的消费情况.jim barry是一个电子消费协会的发言人.我们上周采访了他,在许多美国人交换圣诞礼物之前.他说,今年的购物者比去年计划多花费一些.


jim barry 说:"而且,他们说他们将要购买的东西,前五名是:平板电脑,笔记本电脑,电视,电子阅读器和视频游戏.事实证明,当我们越靠近圣诞节,这些东西确实是人们买的东西".


今年,平板电脑是最流行的电子产品.笔记本电脑排第二.在三月份,苹果发布了他的平板电脑Ipad2.这个公司预计下一年发布Ipad3.Jim barry 说 Ipad将继续引导着平板电脑的市场.


jim barry :"Ipad是平板电脑的领导者,而平板电脑是今年人们愿意购买的列表中排第一名.到目前为止,可能超过80%的已卖出的平板电脑是Apple的Ipad."


但是,Barry 先生说 这种情况正在改变.他说现在有更多的选择,而且花费也更低.这些包括亚马逊出的Kindle Fire.电子阅读器是今年电子消费者协会愿望清单的第三位.Barry 先生说,这个情况对于不少人来说很吃惊.


Jim barry 说:"一些人认为,平板电脑流行和成功意味着电子阅读器销量的下降.但是这种情况没有发生.今年电子阅读器的销量提高了一倍以上.我们买的更多了.电子阅读器市场的领导者继续是亚马逊的Kindle和Barnes and Noble公司的的Nook,以及索尼公司的e-reader".


亚马逊发布了他自己的Kindle Fire,在圣诞节的时候.这个新的Kindle是一个新的触摸屏平板电脑.不想早期的电子阅读器.这个东西是有颜色的,而且他可以让用户浏览互联网


Kindle Fire售价199美元,这笔Ipad便宜几百美元.但是.人们付相同的价钱买去年的Kindle 3G无线.所以最大的问题是许多人考虑是否等待今年的价格再便宜一点.


jim barry说"这是早期用户面临的挑战.大家都知道,消费类电子产品的一个优势就是价钱会随着材料的更好而降低.这与汽车,家具和房子等等的东西不一样.所以随着价格的降低,如果你买的早了,那么你可能感觉到一点:真希望我能再等等啊"


Brarry说:"价格不断下降是电子销售的一个主要优点".


barry说:"这就是为什么消费类电子设备(电视机和其他任何电子类消费东西)做的相当出色,即使在这个经济困难的时期".


他给说了另一个电子产品作为圣诞礼物流行的原因:


barry说:"他们真的非常酷所以你相当的担保:如果你送给某个人电子产品作为礼物,他们将会很高兴他们得到了他"