Dennis Sellers

<p>Worldwide PC (as in personal computers, not just Windows systems) shipments are forecast to decline by 7.3% year -over-year in 2016 according to an updated forecast from the International Data Corporation (<a href="http://www.idc.com/">IDC</a>) <a href="http://www.idc.com/tracker/showproductinfo.jsp?prod_id=1">Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker</a>. The outlook continues to call for progressively smaller declines through 2017 followed by stable volume in 2018. </p>

<p>Apple files for — and is granted — lots of patents by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. Many are for inventions that never see the light of day. However, you never can tell which ones will materialize in a real product, so here are today’s patent highlights:</p>

<p>I wanted to like the $169.99 <a href="http://magnasonic.com/products/display.php?id=3079">LED Pocket Pico Video Projector</a> (especially since the price has been reduced from $299.99). which is lightweight, sports a pocketable (3.9 x 3.0 x 0.5”) design, and packs a rechargeable battery. However, the limited number of Apple devices with which it works dampened my enthusiasm. </p>

<p>If you’ve ever tried to sleep while listening to music on your iPhone or iPad, you may have realized it was an exercise in futility. The earbud style connectors too often fall out and headphones with a band are incredibly uncomfortable. While you could use a speaker, if you sleep with others, this will surely disturb their sleep.</p>

<p>Scosche Industries is expanding its line of portable power devices with the goBAT 4400, a portable backup battery that features a built-in emergency flashlight. It’s available at <a href="http://scosche.com/">SCOSCHE.com</a> for $19.99.</p>

<p>The U.S. Department of Justice has asked the Supreme Court to overturn an appeals court ruling that had favored Apple over Samsung in smartphone patent litigation, and asked that it return the case to the trial court for more litigation, reports <a target="_blank" href="http://www.reuters.com/article/us-apple-samsung-elec-lawsuit-idUSKCN0YU2UK" rel="noopener noreferrer">Reuters</a>, that’s exactly what has happened.</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>An anonymous poll of Apple employees earns CEO Tim Cook a 96% approval rating, earning him the No. 8 ranking among U.S. companies surveyed for Glassdoor's annual Employees' Choice Awards. Glassdoor is a jobs and recruiting site.</p>

<p>Apple will announce new <a href="http://www.macrumors.com/roundup/macbook-air/">MacBook Air</a> models this month and start shipping ‘em next month, according to the Japanese website <a href="http://www.macotakara.jp/blog/rumor/entry-30104.html"><em>Mac Otakara</em></a> — as noted by <a href="http://macrumors.com">MacRumors.com</a> . Meanwhile, the report also claims that Apple will announce a complete refresh of the MacBook Pro this month.</p>

<p>If the GhostStand — <a target="_blank" href="https://appleworld.dreamhosters.com/blog/2016/6/2/the-ghoststand-is-a-scarily-good-stand-for-an-apple-macbook" rel="noopener noreferrer">see my review here</a> — doesn’t suit your fancy for a laptop stand, check out Griffin Technology’s elegant <a target="_blank" href="https://griffintechnology.com/us/products/stands-and-mounts/elevator" rel="noopener noreferrer">Elevator</a>. It elevates your laptop 5.5 inches, which offers several advantages. </p>

<p>Google has regained its position as the world's most valuable brand, overtaking 2015 winner Apple, according to the 2016 <a target="_blank" href="http://www.wpp.com/wpp/marketing/brandz/" rel="noopener noreferrer">BrandZ</a> Top100 Most Valuable Global Brands compiled by Millward Brown and WPP. </p>

<p>Apple has <a href="http://www.apple.com/apple-events/june-2016/">added a page</a> for the 2016 Worldwide Developers Conference to its events website, confirming plans to live stream the keynote event on June 13 at 10 a.m. (Pacific).</p>

<p>A new survey by the ad tech company <a target="_blank" href="http://www.fluentco.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">Fluent</a>— as noted by <a target="_blank" href="http://appleinsider.com/articles/16/06/07/success-of-next-generation-iphone-could-rest-with-siri-survey-says-" rel="noopener noreferrer">AppleInsider</a> — suggests updates to Siri and the unlocking of the personal digital assistant's software development kit could be a key factor in future iPhone adoption.</p>

<p>Apple Pay today has expanded to over 30 new banks and credit unions in the U.S. You can view the full list of banks and credit unions that support Apple’s mobile payment service on Apple’s <a href="https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204916">website.</a></p>

<p>The U.K. House of Commons has passed a controversial bill giving spy agencies the power to engage in bulk surveillance and computer hacking, but ceded some ground to protests from the technology industry (such as Apple) and civil liberty groups, <a target="_blank" href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-06-07/apple-s-encryption-looks-safe-as-u-k-commons-passes-spy-bill" rel="noopener noreferrer">reports Bloomberg.</a></p>