Dennis Sellers

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">According to the latest research from <a href="http://www.strategyanalytics.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Strategy Analytics</a>, global smartphone shipments reached 345 million units in the first quarter (Q1) of 2018. Despite fears of expensive pricing, Apple’s iPhone X was the world’s best-selling smartphone model, shipping an impressive 16 million units during the quarter, according to the research group. </p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">In the first quarter of 2018, Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway bought 75 million shares of Apple, reports <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/03/buffetts-berkshire-hathaway-bought-stunning-75-million-apple-shares-in-first-quarter.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>CNBC</em></a>. That adds to the 165.3 million shares Berkshire already owned at the end of 2017.</p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Apple has been granted two patents that show the company is looking into ways to improve search results on the Mac’s Spotlight feature. Patent number 2018012803 is for “blending learning models for search support,” while patent number 2018121435 is for “re-ranking search results using blended learning models.” Both involve, among other things, crowd-sourced data.</p>

<p>If you’re flatfooted like me, SOLS’s <a href="http://www.sols.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">ExoSOLS app/service</a> can save your sole. It makes it easy to make your daily walk (your literal daily walk) more comfortable by allowing you to make 3D printed, custom orthotics.</p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">On a regular basis, <em>Apple World Today</em> posts a list of notable new apps or app updates that have been released. They may not necessarily be new, but they're popular and deserve mention. Here are today's picks.</p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">MacBook Pro users are petitioning Apple to recall and replace defective keyboards, according to <a href="https://venturebeat.com/2018/05/03/macbook-pro-users-petition-apple-to-recall-and-replace-defective-keyboards/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>VentureBeat</em></a>.</p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Apple is inviting would-be developers and entrepreneurs to apply for one of 400 free places at this year’s Apple Developer Academy, reports <a href="https://9to5mac.com/2018/05/03/apple-developer-academy-application-form/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>9to5Mac</em></a>. Open to students from anywhere in the world, tuition is fully sponsored by the tech giant.</p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Global tablet shipments in the first quarter of 2018 (1Q18) reached 31.7 million, declining 11.7% from the prior year, according to preliminary data from the International Data Corporation (<a href="http://www.idc.com/">IDC</a>) <a href="http://www.idc.com/tracker/showproductinfo.jsp?prod_id=81" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Worldwide Quarterly Tablet Tracker</a>. However, the growing niche of detachable tablets like the iPad Pro and Microsoft Surface experienced more than 2.9% year-over-year growth and captured 15.3% share as newer models came into play, according to the research group. </p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Apple has been granted another patent (number 20180120903) for an “electronic device with a wrapped display” that hints at upcoming iPhones (and perhaps even Macs) with curved screens. Other Apple patents for the same technology include 2016032080 and 9,516,743.</p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Apple is teaming up with 1-800-Flowers to offer 15% off an order when you shop the special <a href="http://c.apple.com/r?v=2&la=en&lc=usa&a=0MExDANV5kskELPmvNhXBVd9OBcpnG1N6D3MfXtPMOKUYoLKOIvOMYePCul1Fe5uTJkK%2FOYkmKaFRTgzpoRkF02OaWRLXnJSPCd2xsGlNhUNKkk92Zr%2BWX6sXyUoaZVx&ct=aI3R0B9G8T" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Gift Collection</a> in the 1-800-Flowers app or on <a href="http://1800flowers.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">1800Flowers.com</a> through May 13.</p>

<p>Some health experts think the most dangerous thing most of us do every day is sit. Like smoking, they believe prolonged sitting is bad and can’t be overcome by exercise. <a href="http://annals.org/aim/article/2091327/sedentary-time-its-association-risk-disease-incidence-mortality-hospitalization-adults" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Several studies</a> have drawn connections between sitting too long and diabetes, hypertension, some forms of cancer, anxiety, and a generally greater probability of early death — though, admittedly, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2017/02/21/health/sitting-study-partner/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">some studies question</a> those other studies. </p>

<p>You can add or remove emergency contacts from the Health app on your iPhone.</p>

<p>On a regular basis, <em>Apple World Today</em> posts a list of notable new apps or app updates that have been released. They may not necessarily be new, but they're popular and deserve mention. Here are today's picks.</p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Upcoming iPhones may ship with USB-C power adapters that come with USB-C to Lightning cables for faster charging, according to Chinese social network <a href="https://www.weibo.com/ttarticle/p/show?id=2309404235294223290545" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Weibo</a>, as noted by <a href="https://www.macrumors.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>MacRumors</em></a>.</p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">The Reform Government Surveillance (RGS) <a href="https://www.reformgovernmentsurveillance.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">coalition</a> — which includes Apple, Dropbox, Evernote, Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft, and Yahoo! — has announced a new core principle on encryption.</p>