Dennis Sellers

<p>According to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.counterpointresearch.com/huawei-surpasses-apple/" rel="noopener noreferrer">Counterpoint Research</a>, Samsung held on to at least 20% of the global smartphone market in June and July, while Huawei and Apple had about half that market share, though the China-based company was slightly ahead of the iPhone maker.</p>

<p>Imagine James Bond using an iPhone and wearing an Apple Watch. Hey, it could happen. Apple and Amazon are among those vying for the rights to the legendary spy’s franchise, as Sony’s rights expired after 2015’s <em>Spectre</em> film, reports <a target="_blank" href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/apple-amazon-join-race-james-bond-film-rights-1035539" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>The Hollywood Reporter</em></a>.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.landingzone.net/">LandingZone</a> has announced its latest docking station for the MacBook Pro with Touch Bar. It’s equipped with 16 ports and costs $299.</p>

<p>Apple’s refusal to approve the Indian government’s anti-spam iPhone app is “infuriating regulators, potentially harming the company’s efforts to sell more products in the country,” according to <em><a target="_blank" href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-06/apple-refusal-to-approve-india-spam-app-antagonizes-regulator" rel="noopener noreferrer">Bloomberg</a></em>.</p>

<p>Apple has been granted a patent (number 9,753,541) for “devices, methods, and graphical user interfaces for generating tactile outputs” with the goal of improving touch feedback on iPhones, iPads, and Apple Watches.</p>

<p>They say the summer months are quiet when it comes to new releases, but this August was the busiest month so far this year.<strong> </strong>I know, I tend to easily get excited when it comes to new Mac games, but just look at the list below!</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>In a note to clients, the Barclays research group <a target="_blank" href="https://9to5mac.com/2017/09/05/barclays-apple-homekit-siri/" rel="noopener noreferrer">says</a> Apple’s smart home products won’t drive sales, but will build customer loyalty.</p>

<p><em>Bloomberg </em><a target="_blank" href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-05/apple-returns-to-debt-market-to-fund-share-buybacks-dividends" rel="noopener noreferrer">is reporting</a> that Apple will sell up to $5 billion in debt to finance share buybacks. The four-part bond sale comes after dropping a two-year floating rate component and a 30-year security will make up the longest part of the sale. </p>

<p>Apple’s Ningbo, China location at Tianyi Square will open on Sept. 16, <a target="_blank" href="http://appleinsider.com/articles/17/09/05/ningbo-china-apple-store-at-tianyi-square-opens-sept-16-in-time-for-iphone-8-release" rel="noopener noreferrer">reports AppleInsider</a>. It will be the tech giant’s 41st retail store in the country. </p>

<p>The Pixelmator Team has unveiled the upcoming Pixelmator Pro 1.0, a new image editing app for the Mac. Codenamed Whirlwind, it will include a modern single-window interface, non-destructive, GPU-powered image editing tools, machine learning-enhanced editing features and much more, says Saulius Dailide, one of the founders of the Pixelmator Team.</p>

<p>JixiPix Software has introduced Watercolor Studio, an automatic photo-to-watercolor artistic app for the Mac and Windows. It renders any ordinary photo into a watercolor painting.</p>

<p>There’s more evidence that the Apple Pencil will come to the iPhone in a newly granted patent (number 9,753,556) dubbed “devices and methods for manipulating user interfaces with a stylus.” And perhaps the Mac, as well.</p>

<p>In a note to clients — as noted by <a target="_blank" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/iphone-8-people-arent-excited-upgrade-piper-jaffray-research-2017-9?r=UK&IR=T" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em>Business Insider</em></a> — Piper Jaffray says “the nature of the coming "iPhone 8" upgrade (shown in a fanciful mockup) still hasn't got through to many ordinary people” as only 16% of 400 iPhone owners surveyed said they expected to upgrade.</p>

<p>Apple has booked up the production capacity for above 12-megapixel lens modules at a new factory being built by smartphone lens module maker Largan Precision in central Taiwan, according to <em><a target="_blank" href="http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20170905PD200.html" rel="noopener noreferrer">DigiTimes</a></em>.</p>