Dennis Sellers

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">With Apple’s plan to open retail stores in India still delayed pending government approval, the tech giant is planning bigger franchisee outlets at key locations in metropolitan cities, according to <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/hardware/apple-plans-flagship-outlets-in-key-locations-to-drive-sales-in-india/articleshow/65479333.cms" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>The Economic Times</em></a>. </p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">When I was a kid, I usually pretended to be Superman. These days — while I’m a looooooong way from being a kid — I can pretend to be Robin Hood (or Hawkeye or Arrow) thanks to the Orb Gaming Virtual Archer. </p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">A report from <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-08-20/apple-is-said-to-plan-revamped-low-cost-macs-to-reignite-sales?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=socialflow-organic&cmpid%3D=socialflow-twitter-tictoc&utm_content=tictoc" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Bloomberg</em></a><em> </em>says Apple will release a Mac mini focused at pro users later this year. New storage and processor options are likely to make it more expensive than previous versions, the article adds.</p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Since Steve and I can’t cover everything, at the end of each week day, we’ll offer this wrap-up of news items you should check out.</p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Apple has released the seventh public beta of macOS Mojave, which debuted in June at the Worldwide Developer Conference. </p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Another day, yet another lawsuit. A company called Zoom is suing Apple for the Emergency SOS feature introduced in watchOS 3. </p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">As noted by<em> </em><a href="https://thenextweb.com/uk/2018/08/20/research-from-stripe-shows-brits-love-apple-pay-hate-tipping/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>TNW</em></a>, research from the <a href="https://stripe.com/gb" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Stripe</a> payment platform shows that British consumers love Apple Pay. </p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Per a <a href="http://www.chinatimes.com/newspapers/20180819000253-260204" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>China Times</em></a> report — as noted by <a href="http://www.macrumors.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>MacRumors</em></a><em> </em>— the wireless charging coil on at least one of Apple's upcoming iPhones will be made from copper wire instead of ferrite polymer composite (FPC). </p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Another day, another lawsuit. As noted by <a href="https://appleinsider.com/articles/18/08/20/apple-sued-over-claims-website-is-inaccessible-to-visually-impaired-users" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>AppleInsider</em></a>, Apple is being sued over claims that the company's website is violating the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by not being fully accessible to blind or visually-impaired consumers.</p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Cool Holdings, a Miami-based company focused on premium retail brands, has announced that it has expanded its Apple partnership by completing the acquisition of a chain of seven OneClick retail stores in the Dominican Republic. OneClick is a certified Apple partner and authorized reseller of Apple products and other high-profile accessory brands. </p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Apple has registered several new Apple Watch model identifiers in the Eurasian economic database, <a href="https://consomac.fr/news-9135-eec-apple-depose-son-apple-watchseries4.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">as spotted by Consomac</a>. The tech giant is expected to unveil new smartwatches at a September event that will also see the roll-out of new iPhones and the long-awaited AirPower wireless charger. All of the models run watchOS 5. </p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Under fire from Chinese state media, Apple has removed illegal gambling apps from its App Store in China.</p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Macally’s $69.99  <a href="http://macally.pr-optout.com/Tracking.aspx?Data=HHL%3d%3d%2f33%3f%26JDG%3c%3b5%3c435%3e%26SDG%3c90%3a.&RE=MC&RI=2904284&Preview=False&DistributionActionID=10217&Action=Follow+Link" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">CHARGER61</a> is a 61-watt aluminum charger with a magnetic USB-C cable specially designed for the 12-inch MacBook and 13/15-inch MacBook Pro with USB-C (Thunderbolt 3) ports. It’s a great charging device, but what I really love about it is that it sports a MagSafe connector (though, for legal reasons, I suspect Macally can’t call it that).</p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Apple has filed for a patent (number 20180234549) for a “user interface for phone call routing among devices.” It involves the current (and future?) tech behind Continuity, which allow various Apple devices to work together so that, for instance, you can make and receive phone calls on your Mac without picking up your iPhone.</p>

<p style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Apple has filed for a patent (number 10,051,423) for “time of flight estimation using a convolutional neural network.” Despite the title of the patent, it’s intended to make it easier to find a lost or misplaced iPhone or iPad.</p>