????這是一個(gè)各類移動(dòng)應(yīng)用井噴的世界。面向蘋果和安卓(Android)設(shè)備的應(yīng)用已經(jīng)達(dá)到100多萬個(gè)，包括食譜、健身、辦公和購物等各個(gè)門類。許多應(yīng)用聲稱可以讓你的生活變得更簡(jiǎn)單，并且可以節(jié)省你人生最寶貴的財(cái)富——時(shí)間。

????但它們是否真的能做到這一點(diǎn)？

????居住在溫哥華的個(gè)人效率顧問埃莉?戴維斯指出：“很多人過于忙碌，不堪重負(fù)。我們都在尋找一些自身之外的東西來減輕自己的負(fù)擔(dān)。”戴維斯專門向客戶提供時(shí)間管理輔導(dǎo)，但她從來不向客戶推薦任何一款效率應(yīng)用，甚至經(jīng)常建議他們不要使用這些應(yīng)用。理由如下：

????首先，市面上的效率應(yīng)用數(shù)量太多，很多應(yīng)用關(guān)注的是非常細(xì)分的領(lǐng)域。TECHnalysis Research公司創(chuàng)始人兼首席分析師鮑伯?奧唐奈爾表示：“這個(gè)行業(yè)沒有進(jìn)入門檻?！睘榱嗽谝呀?jīng)十分擁擠的應(yīng)用生態(tài)系統(tǒng)中打造一個(gè)能夠立足的產(chǎn)品，開發(fā)者們“往往想要開發(fā)一個(gè)獨(dú)特且醒目的東西，所以它往往會(huì)關(guān)注一個(gè)特定問題。”

????鑒于這些細(xì)分市場(chǎng)非常小眾，哪怕是一些非常流行的應(yīng)用所試圖解決的問題，也未必能夠消耗普通人大量時(shí)間。比如，如果你在一個(gè)新城市住酒店，能知道附近哪兒有一家好吃的匹薩店，固然是挺不錯(cuò)的；但酒店的迎賓同樣也能告訴你。在手機(jī)上看一份共享的購物清單，可能確實(shí)比打電話給老婆問她需要買什么東西方便一點(diǎn)點(diǎn)，但在大多數(shù)人的生活中，節(jié)約兩分鐘的意義并不大。何況你節(jié)省下來的這兩分鐘還要花在查看收件箱上。你甚至可能把你的人生都浪費(fèi)在收件箱上。給你老婆打個(gè)電話難道不是更加愉悅的體驗(yàn)嗎？

????不可否認(rèn)，很多人的確很依賴移動(dòng)應(yīng)用。如果你到了一個(gè)陌生的城市，谷歌地圖(Google Maps)會(huì)很有用。酒店的迎賓會(huì)告訴你大致方向，但沒法坐在你的車?yán)锝o你導(dǎo)航。通過銀行應(yīng)用，你只需要給你的支票照張相就可以存錢，而不用開車到網(wǎng)點(diǎn)辦理。如果你在一家商店里想購買一款商品，一個(gè)能派發(fā)優(yōu)惠券的應(yīng)用能讓你省些錢。從長期來看，這也相當(dāng)于節(jié)省了時(shí)間。

????雖然很多應(yīng)用開發(fā)者瞄準(zhǔn)的都是小眾市場(chǎng)，但也有些開發(fā)者意識(shí)到，做一個(gè)包羅萬象的應(yīng)用對(duì)人的幫助更大。比如Journl是一款來自英國的效率應(yīng)用，它綜合了清單、日歷、筆記等功能，旨在讓人們擺脫混雜的系統(tǒng)：日歷在一個(gè)地方，便簽擺放在桌子上，清單在另一個(gè)應(yīng)用中。Journl公司營銷總監(jiān)里娜?漢森表示：“我們用一點(diǎn)清晰和條理取代了這種混亂?！?/p>

????這種通過減少應(yīng)用總數(shù)來節(jié)省時(shí)間的方法其實(shí)是很重要的。因?yàn)榧幢隳硞€(gè)應(yīng)用的確具有某種好處，很多復(fù)雜的應(yīng)用混雜在一起，也會(huì)產(chǎn)生一個(gè)時(shí)間成本。奧唐奈爾指出：“這么多的應(yīng)用，你怎么可能做到一切盡在掌握呢？”安裝一款應(yīng)用需要時(shí)間，讓你的生活適應(yīng)這些應(yīng)用也需要時(shí)間?！叭绻惆l(fā)現(xiàn)這種情況符合你的實(shí)際情況，那當(dāng)然好，但那很難。”

????The universe has exploded with apps. There are over 1 million available for Apple AAPL 0.37% products and for Android devices: recipe apps, fitness apps, productivity apps, shopping apps. Many claim they will streamline your life and save that most precious commodity: time.

????But will they? Can they?

????“So many people are over-busy and overwhelmed. We’re looking for things outside of ourselves to ease our burden,” says Ali Davies, a Vancouver-based personal effectiveness coach who works with clients on time management issues. She almost never recommends a productivity app to a client. In fact, she often recommends the opposite, for several reasons.

????First, because there are so many of them, many apps focus on something very specific. “There are no barriers to entry,” says Bob O’Donnell, who studies the technology marketplace as founder and chief analyst of TECHnalysis Research. To make a viable product in a crowded eco-system, a developer “wants to have something unique, that sticks out, that focuses on a very specific issue.”

????Since these niches are, well, small, problems that even popular apps attempt to solve may not be huge issues that devour people’s time. For instance, if you’re in a hotel in a new city, it’s nice to know there’s a good pizza place nearby. But your hotel concierge can tell you that too. A waiter can tell you what entrees other diners have enjoyed. It may be marginally more efficient to look at a shared grocery list compared with calling your spouse to ask if she needs anything, but in most people’s lives, saving two minutes doesn’t help much. You’ll spend those additional two minutes in your inbox. You could spend your life in your inbox. How much more pleasant to call your spouse instead?

????To be sure, plenty of people do swear by their apps. If you’re in an unfamiliar city, Google Maps is helpful; the hotel concierge can give you directions but isn’t going to tag along in your car. Banking apps that let you take pictures of checks to deposit them save a drive to the branch. If you’re in a store and want to purchase an item, an app that generates coupons can save you money. In the long run, that amounts to saving time as well.

????While many app-makers aim for niches, others have realized that being all-inclusive is likely more helpful. Journl, a productivity app that originated in the UK, combines list making, calendars, notes, etc., with the goal of getting people out of hybrid systems: a calendar one place, random post-it notes on a desk, lists in a separate app, and so forth. “We’re replacing all that chaos with a bit of clarity and calm,” says Lina Hansson, Journl’s chief marketing officer.

????This goal of minimizing the total number of apps you use is important for saving time, because even if any one app has benefit, volume produces a cost in clutter and complication. “There are so many of them, how can you possibly keep track of them?” O’Donnell asks. Setting up an app takes time, as does adjusting your life to the app’s process. “If you find one that works for your style, great,” he says, “but that’s tough.”