Dennis Sellers

<p>Apple has confirmed its US$1 billion investment in SoftBank's $100 billion SoftBank Vision Fund. Through the investment, the company likely hopes to gain insight on emerging technologies.</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><a target="_blank" href="http://www.kanex.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">Kanex </a>announced its GoPlay Series of portable wireless game controllers for iOS at this week’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. GoPlay SideKick, the first in the series, is a pocket-sized wireless game controller for the iPhone, iPad and Apple TV. </p>

<p><a href="http://www.carrier.com/carrier/en/us/">Carrier</a> say its Côr thermostat is now compatible with Apple HomeKit. HomeKit is a framework that allows control of compatible home automation devices through iOS and Siri.</p>

<p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.lacie.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">LaCie</a> announced updates to its LaCie Rugged and d2 storage solutions at this week’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.  The new LaCie Rugged Thunderbolt USB-C — available in capacities up to 5TB — combines iconic Rugged toughness with USB-C compatibility and fast Thunderbolt speeds. </p>

<p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.nuheara.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nuheara</a> has debuted its flagship product, IQbuds at this week’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. It’s now shipping the US$299 "hearable" solution to those who placed pre-orders in 2016.</p>

<p>At this week’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.lynxtechnology.com%2Fhome&esheet=51480115&newsitemid=20170104005003&lan=en-US&anchor=Lynx+Technology&index=1&md5=5df71761ba741037a3bfaed303c92e7d">Lynx Technology</a>  announced its entrance into the Smart Home market with <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.lynxtechnology.com%2Fsmart-home&esheet=51480115&newsitemid=20170104005003&lan=en-US&anchor=SmartLynx+1.0&index=2&md5=ca49a25b89cbab71a69604288f3f9948">SmartLynx 1.0</a>, a Smart Home connectivity solution that comes in Mac, Windows, and Linux versions.</p>

<p>At this week’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, <a target="_blank" href="http://www.idevicesinc.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">iDevices</a> is introducing Instant Switch, a remote wireless, Bluetooth Smart wall switch that allows users to designate additional points of power control anywhere in the home, with no installation or wiring required. </p>

<p>The Vault by Pelican ProGear is an extreme protection case for the iPad Air and iPad mini with retina display found. It's geared for the extreme user and the accident-prone alike. </p>

<p>As noted by the <a target="_blank" href="http://www.mobilenapps.com/articles/27759/20161230/amd-drops-hints-upcoming-next-gen-vega-gpu-architecture.htm" rel="noopener noreferrer">Mobile & Apps website</a>, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) dropped a teaser through its official Twitter account for Radeon that says, "New Year. New architecture," referencing to its next-gen Vega GPU architecture. I think these will be available in the March rev of the iMac and, perhaps, a new Mac Pro.</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>At this week’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, <a target="_blank" href="http://www.intel.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">Intel</a> is announcing an expansion of its current CPU lineup, with the addition of several new and more powerful seventh-generation Core i-series processors known by the code name of Kaby Lake. You can expect to see them, per my crystal ball, in iMacs that will arrive in the spring and new MacBook Pros that will arrive in late summer or early fall.</p>

<p>Neonode has created the <a href="http://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.air.bar&esheet=51484836&newsitemid=20170103005403&lan=en-US&anchor=AirBar&index=1&md5=669f5cef6e3ccfc595ba57fbf2f91dc2">AirBar</a>, a lightweight device that adds touchscreen capabilities to a 13.3-inch MacBook Air. It will be shown at this week’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. </p>

<p>At this week’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Cognitive Systems Corp., an advanced RF technology company, will launch Aura, a “thoughtful” security system for the home that uses patented spectrum analytics technology to detect and monitor motion, without using cameras.</p>

<p>Remember the language translators in <em>Star Trek</em>? Apple wants to give your iPhone, iPad, and perhaps your Apple Watch such capabilities. The company has filed for a patent (number 9,535,906) for a “mobile device having human translation capability with positional feedback.”</p>