Dennis Sellers

<p>Apple has updated iTunes for Mac OS X to version 12.5.1. It’s available at the Mac App Store for free and includes support for iOS 10, which is due to be released today. </p>

<p>Four patents VirnetX, an Internet security software and technology company, said were infringed by Apple have been deemed invalid by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, as the patents <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-09-09/virnetx-plunges-after-patents-deemed-invalid-in-apple-dispute">don't actually cover new inventions</a>, the Office's Patent Trial and Appeal Board argued, according to <em>Bloomberg</em>. VirnetX CEO Kendell Larsen said his company will appeal the USPTO's decisions.</p>

<p>No much for the new iPhone being a bust. Not only is it <a target="_blank" href="https://appleworld.dreamhosters.com/blog/2016/9/13/iphone-77-plus-sales-shatter-sales-records-at-t-mobile" rel="noopener noreferrer">breaking sales records</a> at T-Mobile, but pre-orders of iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus at <a target="_blank" href="http://www.sprint.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sprint</a> are up more than 375% in the first three days over last year.</p>

<p>Future iPhones and iPads may automatically detect the brightness level of the environment you’re in so that when you power it up you’re not blinded by the screen’s bright display. Apple has applied for a patent (number 9,443,460) for “luminescence shock avoidance in display devices,” which could also extend battery life.</p>

<p>As noted by <a target="_blank" href="https://9to5mac.com/2016/09/13/iphone-7-sales-record/" rel="noopener noreferrer">9to5Mac</a>, T-Mobile has reported that pre-orders for the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus have shattered sales records, with orders four times higher than the iPhone 6.</p>

<p>Anyone who's followed my online Apple/tech coverage over the years knows that I love Harman Kardon products. I think Apple should just buy the company.</p>

<p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.ikmultimedia.com/products/iloud" rel="noopener noreferrer">IK Multimedia's iLoud</a> $249.99 is a convenient portable stereo speaker designed for studio monitor quality on-the-on. It packs some punch thanks to its 40W RMS of power, and it's clear at all volume levels thanks to an onboard DSP processor and a bi-amped 4-driver array of high efficient neodymium loudspeakers that provide accurate, even response across the entire frequency spectrum. </p>

<p>I must preface this review by first admitting that I am kind of a bag lady. I LOVE nice bags. Most of the time I am the one doing the admiring though, not the owning. So, when the opportunity to review both the HardCase MacBook Case and the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.sfbags.com/products/cozmo-2-laptop-bag" rel="noopener noreferrer">Cozmo 2.0 Laptop Bag</a> by WaterField Designs, this was one happy bag lady.</p>

<p>Apple CEO Tim Cook, on his <a href="http://twitter.com/tim_cook">Twitter account</a>, shared photos taken at yesterday's Titans-Vikings game and US Open proceedings using the device.</p>

<p>Last week both <a href="https://appleworld.dreamhosters.com/blog/2016/9/9/first-world-problems-part-two-a-big-thumbs-down-on-apples-iphone-7-pre-order-process">Steve</a> and <a href="https://appleworld.dreamhosters.com/blog/2016/9/9/my-frustrating-attempts-to-buy-an-iphone-7-plus-and-second-gen-apple-watch">Yours Truly</a> shared our problems in trying to order an iPhone 7 using Apple’s Upgrade Program. Now Block & Leviton, a Boston-based law firm, says that it has filed a class action lawsuit against Apple on behalf of customers who signed up for the Apple iPhone Upgrade Program last year and have now been shut out of receiving the latest iPhones.</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>Last week both <a target="_blank" href="https://appleworld.dreamhosters.com/blog/2016/9/9/first-world-problems-part-two-a-big-thumbs-down-on-apples-iphone-7-pre-order-process" rel="noopener noreferrer">Steve</a> and <a target="_blank" href="https://appleworld.dreamhosters.com/blog/2016/9/9/my-frustrating-attempts-to-buy-an-iphone-7-plus-and-second-gen-apple-watch" rel="noopener noreferrer">Yours Truly</a> shared our problems in trying to order an iPhone 7 using Apple’s Upgrade Program. </p>

<p>Apple has paid between an 18% and 19% cash tax rate the past four years — or about 70% of its reported tax rate, according to Chuck Jones, a wealth strategist with Northern Trust.</p>

<p>Trend Micro, an IT security company, has discovered a China-based third-party app store that has found a way to distribute repackaged iOS apps. Haima abuses the Apple Developer Enterprise Program by feigning it’s an enterprise, which allows it to bypass the App Store's rigorous security controls and distribute iOS apps without undergoing Apple’s standard vetting and certification process.</p>

<p>Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet Software and Services, is one of the backers of a new, digital leadership platform dubbed <a href="https://home.gopowerforward.com/">PowerForward</a>, which was co-founded by Mike Krzyzewski, the head basketball coach if Duke University and the USA National Team, reports <a target="_blank" href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/stevenbertoni/2016/09/12/dukes-coach-krzyzewski-and-apples-eddie-cue-launch-tech-start-up-powerforward/#11aac34b79d9" rel="noopener noreferrer">Forbes</a>. </p>