Steve Sande

<p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">Welcome back to the Apple World Today News Update podcast. We did not publish a podcast yesterday due to a remarkable lack of news, but today we have a few stories that you can listen to in less than 4 minutes:</p><ul><li>Eating off of an iPad is something you can now do at a 3-star Michelin restaurant in San Francisco </li><li>AAPL is underweight. We discuss what that means and why it may affect some large funds</li><li>Siri's doing a better job at responding to requests for medical help, but still has a long way to go</li></ul>

<p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">This is the third post in our annual 12 part series covering the accessibility features we would like to see Apple bring to its products in the coming year.</p><p>This series is being put together by Accessibility Editor Alex Jurgensen, with the help of several contributors.</p>

<p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">What do you do when you're the CEO of Apple and you're taking a little down time in NYC? You <a target="_blank" href="http://appleinsider.com/articles/16/12/28/apple-ceo-tim-cook-tours-new-york-stock-exchange-while-on-vacation" rel="noopener noreferrer">visit the New York Stock Exchange with your nephew and have fun with traders on the floor</a>.</p><p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">Tim Cook visited the NYSE floor this morning, and his appearance was highlighted live on CNBC's "Squawk Alley". CNBC's Bob Pisani tweeted a photo of Cook signing the famous "Hulk Fists", a pair of large green fists that are signed by celebrities who visit the trading floor.</p>

<p>Did you know that the iPhone (in all of its various incarnations) is the world's most popular camera? We're sure that you -- an Apple World Today reader -- probably take a lot of photos with your iPhone. If you've thought about getting one of those lens kits for your iPhone to play around with but just found the price tags to be a bit on the ridiculous side, we've got the deal for you -- a <a target="_blank" href="https://deals.appleworld.today/sales/clear-clip-snap-camera-lenses-for-your-smart-phone?utm_source=appleworld.today&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=clear-clip-snap-camera-lenses-for-your-smart-phone_122816&utm_term=scsf-89948" rel="noopener noreferrer">5-pack of Clip & Snap Smartphone Camera Lenses for $23.99</a>. </p>

<p>Want a way to get "rewarded" for working off those extra holiday pounds? Apple has a "Ring In The New Year" activity challenge that sounds fun and will be great motivation to get moving. The challenge takes some work to achieve and will last all month long in case you accidentally backslide...</p>

<p>Anyone who has been around the world of Apple for any amount of time is familiar with <a target="_blank" href="http://handbrake.fr" rel="noopener noreferrer">HandBrake</a>. It's a free open source video transcoder, meaning that it's the app you want to use when you need to rip a DVD into a format viewable on your Mac, iPhone or iPad. Sure, there are other commercially available packages, but HandBrake doesn't cost a dime and has a vibrant support community. After "just" 13 years of being in beta, <a target="_blank" href="https://handbrake.fr/news.php?article=37" rel="noopener noreferrer">HandBrake 1.0 was released on Christmas Eve</a>.</p>

<p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">This is the second post in our annual 12 part series covering the accessibility features we would like to see Apple bring to its products in the coming year.</p><p>This series is being put together by Accessibility Editor Alex Jurgensen, with the help of several contributors.</p>

<p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">Apple is on a break this week, so it's like to be a very slow week for news. We'll have plenty of reviews and feature articles for you, though, and of course we'll scour what little news does appear in order to bring you the News Update:</p><ul><li>Apple's AI team publishes its first public paper regarding the subject of Generative Adversarial Networks to improve synthetic training images</li><li>Apple may not have "lucky bags" at Japanese Apple Stores this year, but they will have sales of some sort on January 2nd, 2017</li><li>The Nokia vs. Apple war escalates, with connected-self manufacturer Withings becoming an unwilling casualty</li></ul>

<p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">Anyone who gives presentations in either Keynote or PowerPoint knows just how useful a wireless presenter — a Bluetooth tool used to change slides and move through bullets in a presentation — can be. Today we’re looking at the <a href="http://www.inateck.com/inateck-wireless-presenter-wp2001.html">Inateck Wireless Presenter WP2001</a> (US$14.95), a device that is sadly both outdated in function and design, but has a low price tag as its only saving grace</p>

<p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">It's that time of year again - another year over and a new one just around the corner! Christmas and several Apple keynotes have all come and gone, and we are now into the 12 Days of Christmas.</p><p>This is the first post in our annual 12-part series covering the accessibility features we would like to see Apple bring to its products in the coming year. <a target="_blank" href="https://appleworld.dreamhosters.com/blog/http://w/12/25/accessible-apple-the-12-requests-of-christmas-day-12" rel="noopener noreferrer">To read last year's requests, just click or tap this link.</a></p><p>This series is being put together by Accessibility Editor Alex Jurgensen, with the help of several contributors.</p>

<p>Christmas is just past, and we hope that you get plenty of video of friends and family because if you did, we have just the bundle for you to turn those clips into a lasting memory. The <a target="_blank" href="https://deals.appleworld.today/sales/movavi-video-multimedia-editing-bundle-for-mac?utm_source=appleworld.today&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=movavi-video-multimedia-editing-bundle-for-mac_122616&utm_term=scsf-89911" rel="noopener noreferrer">Movavi Multimedia Editing Bundle for Mac</a> is on sale for the next 5 days for just $43.95, regularly selling for $109.89. </p>

<p>From all of us at Apple World Today to you and your families, we wish you a very Merry Christmas. During the next week, we'll still be around...but will be spending more time with friends and family. Don't worry; we have some fun and surprising posts up our sleeves for the next week or so! </p><p>May today and every day of your new year be filled with the gifts of Christ - peace, love, and hope. </p>

<p>Steve discovers that the "Brazilian Death Flu" is actually a mild case of pneumonia, so hopefully he'll be on the mend now that he's on medication. In this last work day before the Christmas holiday (and Hanukkah begins on the 25th as well), we have just a few items to tide you over until Monday:</p>

<p>Apple's recent moves toward USB-C ports on its computers creates a problem for those of us who have a lot of older peripherals that use other types of interfaces. You can end up with a tangle of cables in your computer bag if you don't watch out! We have just the solution for you today -- a <a target="_blank" href="https://deals.appleworld.today/sales/3-in-1-lightning-microusb-usb-c-cable?utm_source=appleworld.today&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=3-in-1-lightning-microusb-usb-c-cable_122316&utm_term=scsf-206987" rel="noopener noreferrer">3-in-1 MFi Lightning, Micro-USB and USB-C cable</a> for just $22.99!</p>

<p style="margin-left:0px; margin-right:0px">What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger, and Steve's getting stronger every day in his battle with the Brazilian Death Flu. Today, with just a minimum of voice-cracking, we give you the following news bites:</p><ul><li>AT&T rolls out the Cell Protect spam blocking service...although it doesn't work everywhere or on every iPhone</li><li>Apple has apparently been asked to unlock an iPhone 4s used by the assassin who killed the Russian ambassador to Turkey</li><li>Now you can be the life of the party with your iPhone 7 or 7 Plus and djay Pro for iPhone!</li><li>Missiles are flying back and forth between Finland and Cupertino as the patent war between Nokia and Apple escalates</li></ul>