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They are machines that construct complex proteins from the ingredients in the viscinity based on the blueprint found on an injected strand of DNA. Yes it is very basic(compared to what we're used to seeing in nature), and yes they are constructed from pieces farmed from elsewhere.
An analogy might be that each of these machines is like a cassette player (with no buttons) that plays the song of whatever cassette is put inside them once its plugged in.
The next step is to allow the cassette player to read longer tapes containing instructions (fast forward, rewind etc) as well as songs that respond to more complex button pushing from outside.
The analogy breaks down at the next step, since that would involve the cassette player reading the instructions on the DNA that tell it how to build another cassette-
player containing the blueprint cassette.
So 'life' may too strong a term, perhaps 'machines mimicing the processes of life' is more fitting. I do see the boundaries blurring considerably as more complex versions of these things are developed. In my opinion, this could be the start of an exciting new technology that really could change the world.
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