John Biggs of Crunchgear/Techcrunch came to China and, as previously blogged, about 30 of us turned out to meet him one night in Hong Kong.  I didn’t have too much opportunity to talk with him myself but I was trying to figure out why someone would come to this part of the world for the first time and spend so much time in Shenzhen and so little time in Hongkie Town.

Bit by bit, his series of reports on Shenzhen are getting published and it’s easier to see what he was after.  And while normally I’m critical of the “tourist guide written by a tourist” syndrome (which of course is more prevalent on TV than in print), I have to say that he’s done a darn good job here.  Of course he’s not writing about saunas or restaurants or karaoke, he’s writing about the factories and the electronic markets.

He’s published six installments so far and I’ve enjoyed all of them.  Definitely check out the series even if you fancy yourself a Shenzhen expert.

We believe that machines make our machines. This is not true. Humans make our machines and they work long hours for a bit of comfort and an increasing wage. If you think your laptop or even your USB keys plop out like fully-formed electronic fetuses, think again. Each device we own has been touched by countless human hands in the process of prototyping, PCD manufacturing, casing, embossing/printing, and packaging. We forget this truth at our peril.

There is nothing particularly wrong about what’s going on here except for the apparent obliteration of breathable air and the potential safety risks presented by the extremes of the city. On one hand you have smooth, beautiful five lane highways stretching out into the suburban manufacturing centers. On the other hand you have unlit roads lined with dorms where those selfsame manufacturing employees live with their families. Walking home is clearly an exercise in fear control.

Again, I can’t pretend to know this place but it’s a place I’m glad I’m seeing. I’ll have a series of articles coming up next week featuring some of the characters I met out here. This is where the things we desire are made, and, as it goes with most objects of desire, the costs of these things are high and getting higher.

  • Share/Bookmark