As I prepare for a couple of weeks of summer travels, I am considering which gadgets to take with me, and which to leave behind.

我正在为为期两周的夏日旅行准备行囊，现在我在考虑一件事：哪些电子设备要带走，哪些留下。

Much of the packing boils down to: how many screens do I really need?

我的打包工作在很大程度上可以归结为一点：我到底需要多少块屏幕？

This is surprisingly hard to answer. My trip is part holiday, part work, all from the same carry-on suitcase.

这个问题出人意料地难以回答。我这次旅行是半度假、半工作性质的，所带的东西全都要装在一个随身携带的手提箱里。

The most minimal pack would avoid bringing two screens where one would probably do, for the most part. But I am also a big believer in having the right device for the right job, rather than a Swiss army knife gadget that does several things badly.

若想让行囊尽可能的小，那就别一块屏幕基本上能解决问题还带两块。但我同时也坚信干什么事就得用什么设备，瑞士军刀似的设备倒是多用途，但样样都干不好。

A Kindle is perhaps the best example of this. I could read books on a tablet or a smartphone, and save some packing space. But my iPhone’s battery struggles to last a full day as it is, without keeping the screen lit for long stretches of reading, while a Kindle’s charge can last for a whole trip. E-paper screens hold up well in bright sunlight. And for those of us with short attention spans, the fact that an ereader offers nothing but distraction-free immersion earns its space in my case. Just in time, Amazon recently updated its Kindle Paperwhite with higher resolution display ($119/99).

Kindle也许是最能支持我上述观点的例子。我可以在平板电脑或智能手机上看书，同时节省出一些行李空间。但我iPhone的电池可撑不了一整天，这还是在没有为了长时间阅读而让屏幕一直亮着的情况下，而Kindle充一次电够整个旅程用。电子墨水屏上的字即使在耀眼的阳光下也能看得清楚。而且，对我们当中那些注意力短暂的人来说，电子阅读器除了能用来专心阅读什么也干不了，这一点帮它在我的手提箱里争得了一席之地。刚好，亚马逊(Amazon)最近推出了新款Kindle Paperwhite，拥有更高分辨率的显示屏，售价119美元或99英镑。

Some people view trips away from the office as an opportunity to disconnect entirely from the digital world. It’s an admirable objective, if you can manage it, but true de-screening means leaving the iPhone behind, which can impede basic and necessary communication. One solution is the Nokia 105, an ultra-cheap, ultra-simple phone with a “classic” Nokia candybar design. Costing $20 (20) unlocked, its battery lasts for weeks and provides a way to keep in touch without being sucked into Facebook or email. (Playing Snake doesn’t count as breaking a digital detox, right?)

有些人将告别工作去旅行视作一次完全脱离数字世界的契机。这一目标令人钦佩，前提是你真能做到，但真正脱离屏幕意味着你不能带iPhone，这会让你无法进行基本而必要的沟通。解决方案之一是带一部诺基亚(Nokia) 105，这是一款超低价、超简单的手机，外观采用了诺基亚“经典”的直板造型设计。解锁版售价为20美元（或20英镑），电池续航时间可长达数周，为人们提供了一个既能保持联络、又可不受Facebook或电子邮件打扰的选择。（玩贪食蛇不算破坏“数字排毒”，对吧？）

But I won’t be leaving my iPhone 6 behind because it also functions as my camera and music player.

但我可不会把我的iPhone 6留在家里，因为我还要拿它当相机和音乐播放器。

While smartphone cameras are now good enough for all but the biggest photography enthusiasts, there are ways to make them even better. Apps such as ProCam and Manual help to more finely tune an image when capturing, and VSCO Cam and Darkroom bring Photoshop-style retouching into the phone. For wider landscape shots and close-ups, try Olloclip’s 4-in-1 lens, which for $80 (70), provides macro and fisheye lenses that slot neatly over an iPhone or Samsung Galaxy camera.

尽管对普通人来说，智能手机摄像头现在已经足够好了（当然对摄影发烧友来说还不够好），但我们还有方法提升它们的性能。ProCam和Manual等应用可以帮助你在拍照时对图像作更细微地调整，VSCO Cam和Darkroom则让手机可以实现Photoshop式的修图。如果想拍较大景观和特写照片，可以试试Olloclip的四合一镜头，这款售价80美元（或70英镑）的镜头集微距镜头和鱼眼镜头于一身，可严丝合缝地插在iPhone或三星(Samsung) Galaxy手机的镜头上。

If your getaway is more action-packed than mine, GoPro’s new Hero 4 Session is a compact version of its rugged HD video cameras. In a cube that is half the size of regular Heros and waterproof without a case, its simple button controls and wireless connection make it a great action camera, if a little pricey at $400 (320). (I attached it to an electric skateboard for a video review last month and the quality of footage was impressive.) A bonus: because it uses a smartphone to view images, the Session does not count as an extra screen.

如果比起我的假期，你的假期在运动方面的节目更多一些，那么建议你选择GoPro新推出的Hero 4 Session，它是GoPro结实的高清视频摄像机的紧凑版。正方形的机身只有Hero常规版本的一半大小，无需防水外壳就具备防水能力，再加上简便的按钮控制及无线网连接能力，令它成为一款绝佳的运动型摄像机，就是价格略贵——单价要400美元（或320英镑）。（上个月，我曾把它挂在一个电动滑板上，以评估其拍摄效果，得到的视频片段品质令人印象深刻。）选择Hero 4 Session还有个好处：由于它使用智能手机浏览拍摄到的画面，带上它不能算多带了一块屏幕。

So the Kindle and the iPhone go in the bag, but what about a bigger screen?

就这样，Kindle和iPhone都已塞到了包里，不过大一点的那块屏幕选什么呢？

There is something much more leisurely about using a tablet rather than a laptop. However, for this trip I need a proper keyboard for writing and emailing. Were money no object, I would buy Apple’s new MacBook (about $1,199/1,050), which with its high-resolution screen and 920g weight is one of the best laptops I’ve used in years.

说起来，用平板电脑要比用笔记本电脑休闲得多。不过，在这次旅程中，我需要一块像样的键盘，用于写作、以及处理电子邮件。如果不考虑价钱，我会购买苹果(Apple)推出的新款MacBook（单价大约1199美元或1050英镑）。这款笔记本电脑的高清屏幕和920克的重量，令它成为多年来我用过的最好的笔记本电脑之一。

Instead, I’m taking a hybrid approach. At about $230 (250), Asus’s new Chromebook Flip has the same light weight and portability as the MacBook. It even has a so-so tablet, as its touchscreen display can be folded so it lies flat against the device. This breaks my Swiss-army-knife rule, but some tablet is better than no tablet.

不过，我还是选择了折衷方案。华硕(Asus)新推出的Chromebook Flip，价格约为230美元（或250英镑），却拥有和MacBook同样轻盈的重量和同样出色的可携带性。在将其触摸显示屏翻转至该电脑背后之时，它甚至还提供了一台能凑合使用的平板电脑。这种设计违反了我避免瑞士军刀式设备的原则，不过有平板电脑总比没有好。

Like many netbooks running Google’s cloud-oriented operating system, it struggles a bit with handling documents offline and all but requires using Gmail, Google Docs and other Google apps. Battery life is good at up to 11 hours and the keyboard, while a little cramped, is decent too.

正如许多搭载谷歌(Google)云技术操作系统的上网本一样，该电脑离线处理文档会有点困难，必须使用Gmail、谷歌文档(Google Docs)及其他谷歌应用。电池续航时间还不错，可以达到11个小时。键盘虽然有点小，但使用也很顺手。

For iPad Air owners looking for something similar, Logitech’s Type+ Bluetooth keyboard (about $100/90) doubles as a protective case that props up the tablet. The keyboard is good quality for an add-on, but not quite full-sized.

对于拥有iPad Air、在寻找键盘产品的的人来说，罗技(Logitech)的Type+蓝牙键盘提供了双倍功能，可以当作保护套、支撑平板电脑。作为平板电脑附件，这款键盘品质不错，不过还算不上全尺寸键盘。

The verdict

总结

I’m confident that three screens — iPhone, Kindle and Chromebook — are enough to get me through the fortnight. But if I were going for an indulgently tech-free break, dumping them all for a basic Nokia has a definite allure.

我相信，iPhone、Kindle和Chromebook这三块屏幕，足以让我安然度过这两周了。然而，如果我打算放纵自己，度过一个没有高科技产品的假期，那么把它们都从包里扔出来，换成一部只有基本功能的诺基亚手机，绝对是一种诱惑。