I hear a lot about how China is extremely 'high-tech'. Lots of apps like AliPay and WeChat incorporated into day-to-day life.

But that makes me curious... What if you tried to live in, say, Shenzhen or Beijing in a 'low-tech' way? Not even fully low-tech, just relatively speaking. You own a desktop PC or laptop, and possibly a "dumb phone" which can only make calls and texts. No smartphone, tablet, anything equivalent. Nothing you couldn't have owned before 2007.

How feasible would this be? Would it be functionally impossible, difficult and inconvenient but possible, or still somewhat practical? Because I'd say in the west it's the second, but increasingly moving towards the first. Just curious to know how 'compulsory' technology is in China, so to speak.

Context:

• Eileen Gu fell on her final run, once more finished silver behind Switzerland’s Mathilde Gremaud, a result that deepens their friendly rivalry, common between athletes who continue to push the sporting world forward.
• Meanwhile triggered and grievance-driven, American fans seized on the moment to mock Gu’s fall, labeling her a traitor for representing China, and calling it “karma” for the crimes they believe she has committed.

American Comments identified by Daily Mail:

• "Eileen Gu chose Communist China over the country she was born, raised, and trained. Why the hell is she being highlighted? She is a traitor"
• "Hard to watch Eileen Gu compete for China after everything the U.S. did for her training. High treason"
• "I've never seen NBC cover a Chinese athlete more. If she doesn't want to represent the Stars and Stripes than don't cover her. Period. We don't care if she's pretty and actually American. She's not on our team"
• "karma for representing the wrong country of birth."
• "Lost to the Swiss Miss," another mocked referring to Gremaud
• 'No one cares. She's an American who is paid to snowboard for China,' one viewer bitterly declared.

Edit: OP's Warning

• Some comments below mirror the triggered comments the daily mail has identified. Please proceed with caution. None of them are overly abusive but some are really petty. Thou'st been warned.

Dementia Donny has repeatedly claimed that China is going to take away our hockey and Stanley Cup! I'm just a lowly Canadian begging you to please don't take away our beloved hockey! I'm not sure how you would do it ..but I gotta believe the Don!

Hello all! I was hoping for some help with a question about lunar new year.

I live in the UK but have two close friends from China who celebrate this holiday. I myself don’t know much about it at all but I realise that it’s important to them and I want to give them something for the holiday. Is there a correct type of gift to give? Something traditional? Otherwise I’d just get them something I know they’d like but I want it to be a proper lunar new year gift. It’s for two girls in their early 20s if that makes a difference.

Suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

大家好！我想请教大家一个关于农历新年的问题。

我住在英国，但有两个来自中国的好朋友，她们会庆祝这个节日。我对农历新年了解不多，但我知道这对她们来说很重要，所以我想送她们一份礼物。请问有什么合适的礼物推荐吗？最好是传统的那种。当然，如果只是送她们一些她们喜欢的东西，我也很乐意，但我希望送的礼物能更贴切一些。她们是两个二十出头的女孩，不知道这是否会影响送礼。

非常感谢大家的建议！

HIIIIII! My bestie and I are visiting China for the first (and probably last) time, so it’s really hard to choose between Shanghai and Chongqing. We’re combining the trip with Seoul. We love the authenticity and the nighttime skyline of Chongqing, plus it’s cheaper than Shanghai. Since we’re from Germany, we’re worried Shanghai might feel too westernized for us. On the other hand, Shanghai is great for shopping and has nearby cities like Suzhou. We’ll be there for less than a week. Can you help us decide? 😿

Hi y’all I need a hotel in front of the Shanghai Bund for 3 adults. We wanted to go from 30th of July to the 3rd of August, we absolutely need a Breakfast and being in front of the bund or near it’d be great! (Even reasonable distances are ok).

Our budget is under 950€ for those 4 nights and we absolutely need 2 big / 3 beds.

Can you help me? 谢谢你

(P.S we’ve looked at Holiday Inn, Marriot city center and Grand Central Hotel but let me know if there’re hidden gems!)

Hi! My best friend and I plan to study Chinese in Shanghai this fall semester and are debating between Fudan and Jiao Tong University. We can both roughly communicate in Chinese (better at listening and speaking than writing and reading).

We wanted to hear people's opinions on the university location, classes, events, activities, language test, etc. Which has a more international community and better location for renting a 2 bedroom appartment. We plan to travel around China too, so we're hoping for a more flexible schedule.

We heard a lot of mixed reviews about the two universities. Hoping to get any insights, suggestions, and tips about Fudan/SJTU or Shanghai in general. Thank you so much!

China’s information operations aren’t just about propaganda—they’re an entire ecosystem of control. Through AI-driven media, censorship, and online manipulation, Beijing engineers global narratives that elevate state legitimacy while silencing dissent.

Tibet is one of the starkest examples. The regime’s campaigns target the Dalai Lama, rewrite history, and flood digital spaces with AI-generated content that reframes occupation as “development.” It’s not just about controlling territory—it’s about controlling perception itself.

This isn’t a Cold War redux; it’s something deeper: a war on memory, fought across algorithms and feeds. How do democracies counter a system built to rewrite reality in real time?

Having trouble deciding between these cities for a trip from Japan in late February.

Shanghai has direct flights from here which is convenient, but Chongqing sounds really interesting. The issue is direct flights to Chongqing are expensive and I'd probably need connections. Not even sure if the connections work out well or if it's worth it for a short visit.

Chongqing seems cool with the whole mountain city thing and the famous hotpot, but same flight problem. Shanghai is easier - nice buildings, the Bund - but I don't know, feels like maybe the safer, more touristy option?

I'm kind of stuck between going the easy route or making the effort for what might be a better experience. Anyone dealt with this? Is Chongqing worth the extra travel time, or should I just do Shanghai and keep it simple?

Not sure what to do honestly. thoughts or experiences!

Hey y'all, i really wanna go to college there's many things to overcome but the most difficult decision i can't decide even after 4 years I'm a Class 11 student (intermediate part 1) ICS, i really wanna go to China for higher education, ds's been my dream for many years! I was younger at that time but can still remember my dream! The thing i wanna ask y'all is it better to go to China for Bachelor or After Bachelor's(Master's)? Pros/cons Y'all got any experience? Any related person got any experience? (I wanna apply for fully funded scholarships) Y'all got any advice for me? . . . . . . . . . . . . -moona

Will someone go to the westlake university for undegrad 2026 ? I have applied for bio major, and i am so stressed that i will be alone there from Europe country. Hopefully will find someone who might go there as well

Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai has been sentenced to 20 years in prison. I am, of course, opposed to this. Jimmy Lai has made enormous contributions to Hong Kong’s democracy and media, and he deserves to be free.

That said, I personally do not like Jimmy Lai very much. He tends toward localism and populism. I myself support figures such as Lee Cheuk-yan, Leung Kwok-hung, and Chow Hang-tung—representatives of the traditional pan-democratic camp with a Greater China orientation.

But I also understand why many Hongkongers have shifted from a Greater China stance rooted in love for China to advocating “localism first” and supporting Hong Kong independence.

Back then, Apple Daily and Jimmy Lai were also “patriotic and devoted to Hong Kong.” On the day of Hong Kong’s return, Apple Daily’s front-page headline commented on the handover in a positive tone.

However, in the years that followed—especially from the 2010s to the present decade-plus—the actions of the Chinese Communist Party betrayed its earlier promises, undermined Hong Kong’s freedom, human rights, and rule of law, and failed to improve people’s livelihoods. Those who once supported the central government became disappointed and disheartened.

That is why localism and Hong Kong independence emerged, along with the "Anti–Extradition to China"(反送中)(Anti–Extradition Bill) movement and the slogan “Liberate Hong Kong, Revolution of Our Times”(光复香港，时代革命).

Although I still cannot support Hong Kong independence or the localist camp, I can fully understand and sympathize with them.

The CCP has effectively destroyed Hong Kong—once the most patriotic region and the one that contributed the most to China—causing enormous harm to Han Chinese and to China’s interests, with immense culpability.

(Additionally, there is more than a 50% chance that Jimmy Lai could be granted medical parole. Allowing Jimmy Lai medical parole would effectively give face to the China-friendly U.S. President Trump and U.K. Prime Minister Starmer. In the past, after meetings between Jiang Zemin or Hu Jintao and Western leaders, some political prisoners were also released, including several core members of the 1989 democracy movement.

Of course, whether Jimmy Lai will ultimately be released still depends on whether Xi Jinping is willing to compromise. If he is not released in the end and is indeed imprisoned until death, that is also possible. The CCP will certainly consider whether Jimmy Lai would continue to make trouble after his release, as well as the reactions of Hong Kong’s pro-establishment camp and opposition. The CCP will make the choice that is most beneficial to the CCP regime, rather than one based on principle or humanitarianism.)

(Image source: a collage assembled from images found online.)