Dennis Sellers

<p>Apple’s iPhone 8 Plus, equipped with 64GB of NAND flash memory, carries a bill of materials (BOM) cost that comes out to $288.08 higher than any previous versions of the company’s smartphones, according to a preliminary estimate from <a target="_blank" href="http://ihsmarkit.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">IHS Markit</a>, which specializes in “critical information, analytics and solutions.”</p>

<p>Apple has sold 33 million Apple Watches since the launch of the line over two years ago — and 15 million in the past year, according to <a target="_blank" href="http://www.asymco.com/2017/09/25/a-small-screen-ipod/" rel="noopener noreferrer">estimates</a> from Asymco’s Horace Dediu. The analyst says the unit sales in the past year add up to $4.9 billion in revenue.</p>

<p><a target="_blank" href="https://www.jamaudio.com/speakers/jam-symphony-wireless-wifi-speaker" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Jam Symphony</a> is a Wi-Fi only (at least when it comes to wireless) speaker. There’s nothing wrong with that — except for one flaw: you’ll have to make sure that your iPhone is connected to 2.4GHz Wi-Fi, not 5GHz, to use the Jam WiFi app. </p>

<p>Buying a new Apple Watch Series 3 and plan to sell your older Apple smartwatch? Here’s how to prepare it for selling.</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>iMovie for macOS has ben updated, adding support for importing video in the HEVC (High Efficiency Video Coding) format made possible by macOS High Sierra. </p>

<p>Apple has has updated its iBooks Author app to version 2.6. It’s available for free at the <a target="_blank" href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ibooks-author/id490152466?mt=12" rel="noopener noreferrer">Mac App Store</a> for macOS 10.11 or higher.</p>

<p>Interbrand has named Apple, Google, and Microsoft as the three most valuable brands in its 2017 Best Global Brands ranking, with technology as the dominant sector.</p>

<p>Apple is switching the default provider of its web searches from Siri, iOS Search and macOS Spotlight from Bing to Google, reports <a target="_blank" href="https://techcrunch.com/2017/09/25/apple-switches-from-bing-to-google-for-siri-web-search-results-on-ios-and-spotlight-on-mac/" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>TechCrunch</em></a>.</p>

<p>In a note to clients as noted by <em>AppleInsider </em>— KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes pre-orders for the iPhone X could pass <a target="_blank" href="http://appleinsider.com/articles/17/09/25/iphone-x-preorders-could-top-50-million-but-truedepth-camera-is-bottleneck-for-apple" rel="noopener noreferrer">50 million units</a>, noting that the high end smartphone is the first complete form factor revamp since 2016 and could prompt a “super cycle” of upgrades.</p>

<p><em>The Korea Herald</em> <a target="_blank" href="https://www.macrumors.com/2017/09/25/apples-2018-iphone-lcd/" rel="noopener noreferrer">reports</a> that Apple’s 2018 lineup of iPhones could (and “could’ is probably the operative word here), include a larger LCD model measuring over sixinches with the panel coming from Japan Display.</p>

<p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.quickertek.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">QuickerTek</a> has announced their $399 USB-C MacBook External Battery. Created with Lithium-ion power cells, it sports the USB 3.1 adapter cable necessary to power and charge the 2015-2017 12-inch MacBook and 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro.</p>

<p>iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus adoption was <a target="_blank" href="http://info.localytics.com/blog/after-first-weekend-of-sales-iphone-8-shows-slower-adoption-to-previous-models" rel="noopener noreferrer">lower than previous models</a> over the first three days of availability as customers are apparently waiting for the iPhone X.</p>

<p>Apple has filed for a patent (number 20170270704) for “depth of field for a camera in a media-editing application field of the invention.” It hints at beefed up features, such as an enhanced “virtual camera,” in iMovie and Final Cut Pro X.</p>

<p>You can sync playlists and albums on your Apple Watch using watch OS 4.  You can keep one music playlist on your Apple Watch at a time. Audiobooks and podcasts aren't compatible.</p>