Dennis Sellers

<p>In its first appearance in the wearables market, Apple finds itself within striking distance of the established market leader, Fitbit. According to the International Data Corporation, Apple shipped a total of 3.6 million units in the second quarter of 2015 (2Q15), just 0.8 million units behind Fitbit's 4.4 million units. Total shipment volume for the quarter came to 18.1 million units, up 223.2% from the 5.6 million units shipped in 2Q14.</p>

<p>Cell phone shipments in Japan fell 1.9% year-over-year to 7.23 million units in the second quarter of 2015 (April to June), according to a study by IDC Japan. However, Apple remains the top seller of phones in the country.</p>

<p>Apple's AirPlay lets you wirelessly stream what’s on your iOS devices and Macs to an HDTV and speakers. The company has filed for a patent (number 20150242062) with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office for "selectively broadcasting audio and video content" that would involve changes in the technology, especially long the lines of privacy.</p>

<p>Apple is considering advanced bone conduction technology that would improve voice communications in a wireless earphone system. The company has filed for a patent (20150245129) with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office for a "system and method of improving voice quality in a wireless headset with untethered earbuds of a mobile device."</p>

<p>The wearables market in the U.S. from 2014 through the first half of 2015 has shown fast growth in year-over-year volume of consumer feedback. Hhowever after peaking post-holidays in January 2015, demand growth has slowed significantly, according to a new report from <a href="http://www.argusinsights.com">Argus Insights</a>. However, things look good for the Apple Watch.</p>

<p>Fourteen former and current Foxconn employees have been sentenced to prison for jailbreaking and selling more than 9,000 iPhones bought from the US and selling them for higher prices in China, according to Tencent Tech, the technology news section of Tencent, a major Chinese web portal. </p>

<p>If Apple Music doesn't satisfy all your music listening needs, AppGeneration's <a target="_blank" href="http://www.mytuner.mobi" rel="noopener noreferrer">myTuner Radio ap</a>p  for Mac OS X is a nice complement to the music service. </p>

<p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">The International Data Corporation thinks that the rumored "iPad Pro" will be a "detachable" device, a hybrid tablet/laptop along the lines of Microsoft's Surface devices. As I've said before, I'm dubious, but IDC's theory is an increasingly popular one.</p>

<p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">Global shipments of PCs — as in "personal computer" as opposed to Windows computers — will fall by -8.7% in 2015 and not stabilize until 2017, according to the latest data from <a target="_blank" href="http://www.idc.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">International Data Corp</a>. However, the Sellers Research Group (that's me) says the Mac will defy this trend</p>

<p>Apple has updated Logic Pro X — its software for writing, recording, editing and mixing your own music — to version 10.2. It now integrates Alchemy, a sample-manipulation synthesizer. </p>

<p>According to new data from the <a target="_blank" href="http://www.idc.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">International Data Corporation</a>, smartphone shipments are expected to grow 10.4% in 2015 to 1.44 billion units. This is lower than IDC's previous smartphone forecast of 11.3% year-over-year growth in 2015. </p>

<p>Wells Fargo analyst Maynard Um <a target="_blank" href="http://tinyurl.com/nokb7az" rel="noopener noreferrer">has upgraded his Apple share outlook</a> to "outperform" with a target range of US$125 to $135. </p>

<p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">Apple has been granted a patent (number 9,119,141) by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office for ubiquitous access to a femtocell-connected network. A femtocell is a small, low-power cellular base station typically reserved for use in a home or small business. </p>

<p>Recently, I began receiving annoying texts from a "mystery shopping" company asking me to do some work for them. I smelled something fishy, so when they kept texting me, I decided it was time to block their number on my iPhone. You may have a number you'd like to block, as well. If so here's how.</p>

<p>Apple has been granted a patent (number 9,118,642) by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office that hints at an Apple NAS device/home server I've long wanted. The patent is for "asset streaming." NAS — or network-attached storage — is a computer data storage server connected to your computer network that provides access to a wide variety of data.</p>