Dennis Sellers

<p class="">With iOS 14 and iPadOS 14, you can get recommendations for the best places to visit in a city with Guides created by what Apple describes as a selection of trusted brands that include AllTrails, Complex, The Infatuation, Time Out Group and <em>The Washington Post.</em></p>

<p class="">The Home app in iPadOS 14 is designed to make smart home control easier with new automation suggestions and expanded controls in Control Center for quicker access to accessories and scenes.</p>

<p class="">watchOS 7 includes a handwashing feature. No, it won’t enable your Apple Watch to actually wash your hands, but it’s designed to make sure you do a good job of washing ‘em yourself.</p>

<p class="">The rumored “Apple Glasses” — an augmented reality/virtual reality/mixed reality head-mounted display (HMD) —may sport a coordinated camera and display operation, as evidenced by a new patent filing (number 20200342678).</p>

<p class="">An Eastern District of Texas jury said Friday that Apple should pay US$502.8 million for infringing VirnetX's network security patents, wrapping up a damages retrial held after a nearly identical award was thrown out on appeal, reports <a href="https://www.law360.com/technology/articles/1324809">Law 360</a> (a subscription is required to read the entire article).</p>

<p class="">Apple <a href="https://support.apple.com/airpods-pro-service-program-sound-issues" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">has announced </a>the AirPods Service Program for sound issues. The tech giant says it has determined that a small percentage of AirPods Pro may experience sound issues. Affected units were manufactured before October 2020.</p>

<p class="">A mobile app designed to help ensure that Pennsylvania ballots are getting counted has already been rejected—by Apple itself, according to <a href="https://www.theinformation.com/articles/apple-rejects-app-for-verifying-pennsylvania-ballots" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Information</a>.</p>

<p class="">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 this week’s picks.</p>

<p class="">Apple’s Apple One bundle of services is now available. It includes Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, iCloud, Apple News+ and Fitness+ — at a discounted price. One caveat: Fitness+ hasn’t yet launched, but is coming later this fall.</p>

<p class="">Apple tops Interbrand's "Best Global Brands" list for the eighth time. The tech giant was assigned a “brand value” of about US$323 billion, up 38% from $234 in 2019.</p>

<p class="">The Ninth Circuit of California has amended a ruling in favor of Apple retail store workers who say they should be paid for time spent waiting for end-of-shift bag searches, giving Apple a chance to argue to the district court that the time was too trivial to merit pay, reports <a href="https://www.law360.com/technology/articles/1324206/apple-sways-9th-circ-to-revive-bag-case-defense?nl_pk=ade0cf2b-ea3f-464b-bc93-d8e19277ac63&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=technology&read_more=1&attachments=true" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Law360</a> (a subscription is required to read the entire article).</p>

<p class=""><a href="https://apps.apple.com/app/south-of-the-circle/id1477077753"><span style="text-decoration:underline">South of the Circle</span></a> is this week's addition to <a href="https://www.apple.com/apple-arcade/">Apple Arcade</a>, Apple’s US$4.99/month or $49.99/year game streaming service that has over 120 games,. It's available for the the iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, and Mac.</p>

<p class="">Apple shipped 41.6 million iPhones in the third quarter of 2020, down 10.6% year-over-year, which placed the company in fourth among smartphone manufacturers for the first time with 11.8% share, according to <a href="http://www.idc.com"><span style="text-decoration:underline">IDC</span></a>.</p>

<p class="">Tomorrow is Halloween. Here are some macOS and iOS apps to help celebrate the scary day.</p><p class=""></p>

<p class="">A newly granted Apple patent (number 10,814,167) for a “wearable computer with fitness machine connectivity for improved activity monitoring” shows that future Apple Watches could interact directly with fitness machines.</p>