Dennis Sellers

<p class=""><a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-04-03/apple-tells-staff-u-s-stores-to-remain-closed-until-early-may?sref=9hGJlFio" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Bloomberg</a> reports that Deirdre O’Brien, Apple’s senior vice president of Retail + People, told employees in a memo that its retail stores in the U.S. will remain closed and work-from-home procedures will stay in place until early May due to the COVID-19 pandemic. All the stores outside the Greater China area were closed on March 17.</p>

<p class="">Water resistance iPhone? Humbug! That’s nothing. Apple wants one that’s totally waterproof as evidenced by a newly granted patent (number 20200104021) for an “underwater user interface.”</p>

<p class="">Apple has filed for another patent (number 20200104038) for controlling Macs, iPads, and Apple TVs (the set-top box) by motion gestures.</p>

<p class="">It's official: the <a href="http://www.publix.com/"><span style="text-decoration:underline">Publix </span></a>super market chain (my favorite, by the way) has announced that it’s rolling out contactless pay — including Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay -- to all its stores, including GreenWise Market.</p>

<p class="">Intel says it’s breaking the 5GHz barrier for laptops with the launch of the 10th Gen Intel Core H-series mobile processors that's particularly suited to “gamers and creators.” That said, they should be a natural fit for the next generation of 16-inch MacBook Pros.</p>

<p class="">On the new <a href="http://www.macvoices.com/macvoices-20107-macvoices-briefing-five-more-ways-to-improve-your-videoconferencing/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">episode of MacVoices</a>, host Chuck Joiner provides five more ways to improve your videoconferencing skills. Find out what to do and what not to do.</p>

<p class="">Conferencing usage has skyrocketed in the last three weeks with <a href="http://freeconferencecall.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">FreeConferenceCall.com</a> reporting a nearly 700% increase in new customer sign-ups the week of March 22 (vs. sign-ups from the week of Feb. 23). It also looks as if it could be a viable alternative to the <a href="https://appleworld.dreamhosters.com/blog/2020/4/1/zoom-sued-for-security-failures-so-its-time-for-apple-to-open-source-facettime?rq=Zoom" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">trouble-plagued Zoom</a>.</p>

<p class="">Satechi is donating 5% of all sales today through April 15 to <a href="https://projectcure.org/project-cure-response-covid-19" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Project C.U.R.E.</a>, which is working diligently to provide critical supplies and resources to hospitals and heroes on the front lines of the fight against theCOVID-IT pandemic.</p>

<p class="">Apple has filed for a patent (number 20200106955) for “devices, methods, and graphic user interfaces for assisted photo taking” with the goal of helping the vision-impaired take better pics with their iPhones and iPads.</p>

<p class="">Apple, Laurene Powell Jobs [Steve Jobs’ widow], actor Leonardo DiCaprio, and the Ford Foundation have partnered to launch <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/f/americasfoodfund" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">America's Food Fund</a>, an initiative aimed at helping to ensure that all people have reliable access to food in the United States. Its goal is “to help ensure that all people have reliable access to food.”</p>

<p class="">Eddy Cue, Apple’s vice president of Internet Software and Services, has been named to the Board of Trustees for the <a href="http://www.paleycenter.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Paley Center for Media</a>.</p>

<p class="">Apple has <a href="https://apps.apple.com/us/story/id1279707387" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">spotlighted</a> several apps for Autism Acceptance Month, part of a history of campaigns by autistic people and their allies to shift the month’s focus from autism awareness to autism acceptance.</p>

<p class="">Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai has circulated draft rules permitting unlicensed devices to operate in the 6GHz band. The proposed rules would make 1,200 megahertz of spectrum available for unlicensed use.</p>

<p class="">Despite previous reports that the next iPad Pro update -- expected this fall or early 2021 — would include the U1 chip introduced with the iPhone 11 line-up, <a href="https://www.macrumors.com/2020/04/01/2020-ipad-pro-may-not-have-u1-chip/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">MacRumors</a> says it has “compiled evidence” that this may not happen.</p>

<p class="">Apple has been granted a patent (number 202000104887) for “techniques for identifying ingenuine [false, not genuine or authentic] online reviews” and preventing them from being published.</p>