Dennis Sellers

<p>As noted by <a target="_blank" href="http://appleinsider.com/articles/17/10/20/apple-watch-gps-functionality-target-of-latest-uniloc-patent-lawsuit" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>AppleInsider</em></a>, patent troll Unilock is suing Apple (again), claiming the tech giant infringes an exercise monitoring system patent invented by Paragon Solutions. </p>

<p>Alphabet, Google’s parent company, is collaborating with Apple, AT&T, and government agencies including the FCC, FAA, and FEMA, to deliver limited wireless Internet access to Puerto Rico via the company's Project Loon balloons, as announced in a <a target="_blank" href="https://blog.x.company/turning-on-project-loon-in-puerto-rico-f3aa41ad2d7f" rel="noopener noreferrer">blog post</a> by Alistair Westgarth, head of Project Loon.</p>

<p>There’s a lot happening in the world of Apple news this week. Following are the hottest articles for the week of Oct. 16-20.</p>

<p><em>Variety </em><a target="_blank" href="http://variety.com/2017/tv/news/apple-morgan-wandell-amazon-international-development-1202595359/" rel="noopener noreferrer">is reporting</a> that Apple has hired Amazon Studios alum Morgan Wandell to lead Apple Video’s international development. He started at Amazon in 2013 and initially oversaw drama development before moving to an international marketing focus. </p>

<p>Angela Ahrendts, Apple’s senior vice present of Retail, tells <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/20/angela-ahrendts-apple-retail-senior-vp-interview.html" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>CNBC</em></a> that Apple isn’t going to take the hard sale route in pushing the iPhone X. She says Apple has told retail employees not to try to upsell customers to the most expensive iPhone model.</p>

<p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.billboard.com" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Billboard,</em></a> the music industry “bible,” says it will place greater emphasis to paid subscription streams with ad-supported activity remaining an “important factor” in the Billboard Hot 100, Billboard 200, and other charts.s Apple is among those streaming services.</p>

<p><em>Nikkei Asian Review</em> <a target="_blank" href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/AC/Apple-Foxconn-executives-to-meet-amid-iPhone-X-production-strain" rel="noopener noreferrer">sources</a> say Apple Chief Operating Office Jeff Williams will meet with Hon Hai CEO Terry Gou in Taiwan later this month. Hon Hai, also known as Foxconn, is the only assembler of the iPhone X and its Sharp subsidiary shares 3D sensor module creation duty with LG Innotek. </p>

<p><a target="_blank" href="https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/19/senators-cruz-and-leahy-demand-answers-from-apple-over-china-vpn-apps.html" rel="noopener noreferrer">CNBC reports</a> that U.S. Senators Ted Cruz and Patrick Leahy wrote to CEO Tim Cook about the removal of virtual private network (VPN) apps from the China App Store. The senators want to know if Apple pushed back hard enough against the Chinese government or if the company helped the government with its internet crackdown. </p>

<p>Observer, the cyberpunk horror game developed by <a target="_blank" href="https://www.blooberteam.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer">Bloober Team</a>, the creators of Layers of Fears, is officially coming to Mac on Oct. 24, according to Mac Gamer HQ. Both Mac and Linux versions will be available on <a target="_blank" href="http://store.steampowered.com/app/514900/observer/" rel="noopener noreferrer">Steam</a>.</p>

<p>Another day, another lawsuit. Emonster k.k., a Japanese software development company, and Enrique Bonansea, a U.S. citizen living in Japan, is suing Apple for allegedly infringing on a U.S. trademark covering “Animoji,” reports <a target="_blank" href="http://appleinsider.com/articles/17/10/19/apple-sued-over-animoji-trademark-allegedly-tried-to-buy-ip-rights-prior-to-iphone-x-debut" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>AppleInsider</em></a>.</p>

<p>In a note to clients, KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says A KGI report says Apple will ship “only” <a target="_blank" href="https://9to5mac.com/2017/10/20/3-million-iphone-x-units-at-release-date-production/" rel="noopener noreferrer">two million to three million units</a> of the iPhone X in the initial launch on November 3 because component shortages pushed back production schedules. </p>

<p>Sonnet Technologies has announced the $89.90 <a target="_blank" href="http://www.sonnettech.com/product/thunderbolt3-to-dual-hdmi-adapter.html" rel="noopener noreferrer">Thunderbolt 3 to Dual HDMI 2.0 Adapter</a>. The compact bus-powered device enables users to connect up to two 4K ultra-high-definition (UHD) HDMI monitors with just one Thunderbolt 3 port on a Mac or Windows systems.</p>

<p>ProVUE Development has released Panorama X, a general purpose database system for Macs. It sports a 64-bit RAM based database engine and universal multi-level Undo.</p>

<p>Apple has applied for a patent (number 20170302326) for an “electronic device having antenna tuning integrated circuits with sensors.” It would allow 5G network implementation in future iPhones and iPads.</p>

<p>There’s no way I’d consider replacing my iMac with an iPad Pro — even if the former was offered in a 27-inch model (I love big screens). However, for the first time, my 12.9-inch iPad Pro is a suitable secondary computer that can replace my Mac laptop when I’m traveling. </p>