Dennis Sellers

<p>The HomePod offers news briefs from a variety of news sources to help keep you up to date.</p>

<p>A friend of mine turned me onto a video on YouTube that insisted that you listen while wearing headphones and insisted that you keep your eyes shut throughout the presentation. I couldn't believe it; I was treated to surround sound using a pair of stereo headsets!</p>

<p><a target="_blank" href="http://www8.hp.com/us/en/services/daas-for-apple.html?jumpid=in_r12012_us/en/shared/device_as_a_service_v2/introducing-daas-for-apple-learn-more" rel="noopener noreferrer">HP has expanded</a> its Device as a Service (DaaS) to now offer Apple devices such as: iPhone, iPad, and Mac. It’s designed to provide a one-stop solution that combines Apple hardware and HP lifecycle services “to make your company more efficient, improve the employee experience, and free up IT resources.”</p>

<p>Apple has updated its Shazam app, the popular music recognition app that’s used by more than 100 million people each month to identify music, get song lyrics, and more. The company has added lyric syncing, better search results display, and a new track menu that provides access to the info the Shazam service offers.</p>

<p>Apple has renewed <em>Carpool Karaoke: The Series</em> for a second season, CBS CEO Les Moonves announced this afternoon, according to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/apple-renews-carpool-karaoke-second-season-1085314" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>The Hollywood Reporter</em></a>. It’s available to Apple Music subscribers.</p>

<p>According to the latest research from <a target="_blank" href="http://www.strategyanalytics.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">Strategy Analytics</a>, global smartphone revenues hit an all-time high of $120 billion during the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2017. Apple captured a record 51 percent global smartphone revenue share, accounting for more than the rest of the entire industry combined.</p>

<p>Rally Racers, a cartoon-based car racing game, is available on <a target="_blank" href="http://store.steampowered.com/app/514530/Rally_Racers/" rel="noopener noreferrer">Steam</a> for macOS and Windows for $11.99.</p>

<p>In a note to investors — as noted by <a target="_blank" href="http://appleinsider.com/articles/18/02/15/apple-watch-airpods-homepod-apples-other-products-predicted-to-rake-in-22b-in-revenue-by-2019" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>AppleInsider</em></a> — Guggenheim analyst Robert Cihra says Apple’s "other products” category is poised to become the company's fastest growing segment.</p>

<p>A bug that causes app and system crashing on iPhones, iPads, and Macs due to a specific letter in the Indian language Telugu has been fixed in Apple's upcoming iOS 11.3 and macOS 10.13.4 software updates, reports <a target="_blank" href="http://www.macrumors.com" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>MacRumors</em></a>. </p>

<p>Apple has been granted a patent (number 20180047320) for a “transparent electronic device” — the device being a display to be used for, among other things, augmented reality (AR) purposes on iPhones, iPads, and Macs.</p>

<p>According to new research from TechInsights, Apple spends $216 to build a $350 HomePod, so margins from the tech giant's wireless speaker are slimmer than, for instance, those for its iPhone line.</p>

<p>Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway increased its Apple holdings by 23.3% to 165.3 million shares, according to SEC filings. The multinational conglomerate company dumped about 94.%of its IBM holdings, leaving just 2.05 million shares.</p>

<p>The <a target="_blank" href="http://bit.ly/1DvWWRK" rel="noopener noreferrer">iOttie Easy Smart Tap 2</a> is a wonderful mount for your tablet — if you have an iPad 3/4, iPad mini, or iPad Air. I’ve been using the $44.95 mount for some time now and have really come to appreciate the use I get out of it in our van.  </p>

<p>Twelve South has released the $49.99 <a target="_blank" href="https://www.twelvesouth.com/product/surfacepad-for-iphone" rel="noopener noreferrer">SurfacePad for iPhone X</a>. It protects the front and rear of the smartphone, while providing sleep/wake functionality via magnetized front cover.</p>

<p>Apple engineers can’t afford to leave near their Cupertino, California offices, according to the real-estate startup Open Listings (as noted by <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/40531163/study-even-apple-and-google-engineers-cant-really-afford-to-live-near-their-offices"><em>Fast Company</em></a>), which <a target="_blank" href="https://www.openlistings.com/blog/can-engineers-afford-homes-near-work-in-sf-la/" rel="noopener noreferrer">looked at</a> median home sales prices near the headquarters (meaning within a 20-minute commute) of some of the Bay Area’s biggest and best-known tech companies. </p>