Dennis Sellers

<p>Apple wants your iPhone (and, perhaps in the future, the Apple Watch) to help you avoid long lines at the grocery store and other businesses.</p>

<p>With Mac OS X Yosemite, you can see 3D flyover views of various cities in the Maps app. Here's how:</p>

<p>As measured by sales through the U.S. consumer retail market, Mac laptop sales increased 27% year-to-date and Windows notebooks grew 3% during the first half of 2015, according to the <a target="_blank" href="http://www.npd.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">NPD group</a>. </p>

<p>As noted by <a target="_blank" href="http://tinyurl.com/ptmyd3k" rel="noopener noreferrer">SlashGear, </a>new Apple accessories for desktop Macs have appeared in FCC listings. They could debut with new iMacs that <a target="_blank" href="http://tinyurl.com/oxqxde4" rel="noopener noreferrer">are rumored to arrive</a> before the holidays. </p>

<p>Apple Car rumors are picking up speed.</p><p>I remain skeptical, but <a target="_blank" href="http://tinyurl.com/nffafs7" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Guardian</a> reports that Apple is building a self-driving car and is scouting for secure locations in the San Francisco Bay area to test it.</p>

<p>Apple is now offering a <a target="_blank" href="http://tinyurl.com/o9sh8p2" rel="noopener noreferrer">42mm Link Bracelet Kit</a> for the Apple Watch for US$49.</p>

<p>Once hoping for a fall launch, Apple is now looking to bring its Web TV service to market in 2016, according to <a href="http://tinyurl.com/p9b2pav">Bloomberg</a>. </p>

<p>How is the Fitbit faring against the Apple Watch? We now know, thanks to an upcoming report from <a target="_blank" href="https://www.1010data.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">1010data's Ecom Insights</a>. AppleWorld.Today received an advance copy of the report, which will be released next week.</p>

<p>Apple has released updates for Mac OS X, iTunes and iOS.</p>

<p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">Apple has filed for a patent (number 20150227979) with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office that's designed to make online ads more effective at catching your attention</p>

<p>Apple's AirDrop could eventually encrypt data before sending it to another device, which can be used for backup. The company has filed for a patent (number 20150230078) with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office for "secure ad hoc data backup to nearby friend devices."</p>

<p>Apple wants your Mac, iPhone and iPad to be able to recognize people in a photograph by facial recognition, then send them a copy of the picture. The company has filed for a patent (number 20150227782) with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office for "systems and methods for sending digital images."</p>

<p><a target="_blank" href="http://tinyurl.com/oksh42z" rel="noopener noreferrer">TIME says its research shows</a> that computer buyers like businesspeople and students still want a traditional laptop rather than a "hybrid" device — a two-in-one gadget that works as both a laptop and tablet. Still, the magazine thinks that Apple is working on such a device. I think TIME is wrong.</p>

<p><span style="font-size:17px">Whatever happened to the post-PC era with tablets slowing replacing traditional personal computers? Tablet shipments continued to decline in the second quarter of 2015, falling 11% year on year to 42.5 million units, although Apple's iPad still dominates, according to the </span><a target="_blank" href="http://www.canalys.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">Canalys research group.</a></p>

<p><a target="_blank" href="http://tinyurl.com/o8sm8bc" rel="noopener noreferrer">Intel has announced plans</a> to release a laptop version of its Xeon processor. It's possible we'll see them pop up in the most powerful MacBook Pros ever, though Apple would have to make some compromises in regards to battery power.</p>