[caption id="attachment_845" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Apple"][/caption] Few would argue that Apple is a successful company. The company has given us the iPhone, iPad, iPod, iTunes and Mac computers. Apple iPads were one of the hottest gifts of 2010 and the company is on the verge of releasing the iPad 2. Verizon Wireless made headlines about two weeks ago when it announced it would carry the infamous iPhone and include the ability to use your iPhone as a mobile hotspot for computer internet access. Now we know that Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO, is taking a permanent medical leave of absence, and he’s been a driving force of innovation for Apple, but many things have already been set in place to keep Apple moving forward without him, including the fact that Apple has been issued 563 different patents in 2010 for new products. Of course, this doesn’t mean Apple will be producing 563 new exciting devices like the iPad, but some of them could change the way we interact with our environment, the way we “channel surf” and the way we enter our homes. A couple of Apple’s most intriguing patents for TV usage are the “Apple TV” and “Wand Remote,” which allows you to gesture control images on your Apple TV. Imagine being able to pop-up an Apple TV in your TV lift cabinet and use a Wii-like remote to access apps, control your instant-watch media or flip through the channels by the flick of a wrist. But before you get inside your home to watch TV, you’ll be able to use your iPhone by swiping it near a control pad outside your home (or car) that has a proximity-based PIN code system. And viola, you’re inside your home!