Cult of Mac

Summer provides plenty of opportunities to get outside, whether you’re at a sports game, concert or just taking in nature. If you’d like to get a better view of memorable moments along the way, take advantage of this limited-time sale on a set of versatile camera binoculars.

During Deal Days, our version of Amazon’s Prime Day, you can pick up these HD Digital Camera Binoculars for only $99.97 (regularly $199) with free shipping — no coupon necessary. You’ll have to be quickly, though, since this deal only lasts through July 14 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific!

Meta just launched Threads, a new text-based social networking service that goes head-to-head with Twitter. Meta’s Facebook and Instagram have always competed with Twitter, of course, but Threads does so directly. The two apps are nearly identical.

Twitter has struggled since being acquired by Elon Musk in 2022, and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg clearly sees an opportunity to supplant it.

With all the buzz about its upcoming Vision Pro augmented-reality headset, Apple sent out a reminder that iPad Pro also has AR capabilities. The tablet powers Deep Field, an application that lets children use an Apple Pencil to draw plants inspired by works of art, and have their creations rendered into 3D via the magic of augmented reality.

If you have a passion for cooking, then you don’t have to debate whether or not it’s worth investing in quality tools.

A capable and high-quality knife set is a great place to start. Luckily, you don’t have to wait for Prime Day to score savings on new, much-needed kitchen artillery. During Deal Days, our version of Prime Day, you can grab this exclusive buy-one-get-one (BOGO) deal on this eight-piece Seido Japanese knife set with gift boxes for only $139.99 (regularly $429). Act fast since this deal only lasts until July 14 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific!

Platonic heads into the home stretch this week as the Apple TV+ comedy about two friends who interrupt each other’s lives and relationships digs into jealousy.

Charlie takes his anger out on a co-worker in the strangest way imaginable. Sylvia takes out her anger directly on Charlie. And Will takes out his anger on his co-workers, who in turn take out their frustration on him. It’s less of a listening and learning week than a wit’s end week on this very easily consumed show.

A federal judge in Louisiana issued a broad injunction Tuesday limiting federal government contact with social media sites over what the Biden administration may see as disinformation spreading out of control.

The ruling is one of many upcoming that frame a fight over the constitutionality of curbing social media’s influence in light of the First Amendment’s right to freedom of expression.

A smartwatch like your trusty Apple Watch might be able to screen you for Parkinson’s disease up to 7 years before symptoms would show up if you have it, according to a fascinating new study.

Parkinson’s damages the brain slowly, so early detection via smartwatch could offer treatment advantages as new therapies develop.

Apple TV+ dropped the official trailer Wednesday for its upcoming historical drama Killers of the Flower Moon. The sprawling period piece is filled with the rage and bloodshed of one of America’s most-enduring murder mysteries.

Based on a nonfiction account of a deadly conspiracy by white men to capture oil wealth held by the Osage Indian nation members in early-1900s Oklahoma, the Marin Scorsese film counts Leonardo Di Caprio and Robert De Niro among its sprawling cast.

Amazon is knocking a sweet 20% off second-gen AirPods Pro ahead of next week’s Prime Day sale. Take advantage of the deal, and you can get Apple’s best AirPods Pro for $199.99, down from $249.

While not the lowest price ever seen, this is still a terrific deal you should not miss.

Apple TV+ terrorist thriller Hijack finally takes off this week, introducing real challenges and intense, investigative set pieces as the people on the ground try to figure out if the plane has been taken over, and if so, why — and what can be done about it.

The calm, cool and collected interloper played by Idris Elba takes action as the plane he’s on descends further and further into chaos. The episode, entitled “Draw a Blank,” is the best this show has yet been.

Everybody gets in the zone when it’s time to work out. Music is one great way to get there, but AirPods aren’t always the safest option if you’re biking or jogging on busy roadways. Audiophiles have been conditioned to think that earbuds are best when they drill sound waves directly into the ear, but these open-ear induction headphones are at the forefront of a new wave in personal audio.

During Deal Days, our version of Prime Day, Cult of Mac readers can get a pair of these innovative bone-conduction headphones for only $24.97 (regularly $79) with no coupon necessary. But you’ll have to move quickly, as this deal only lasts until July 14 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific!

Adding a second screen to any computer can instantly take your experience to the next level. For gamers that need additional playing real estate, or remote workers looking to boost productivity, the way to do it is with the USteam F22 15.6-inch 1080P FHD portable monitor, now on sale for only $129.99 (regularly $229.99) with no coupon necessary.

The super-low price is due to our epic Deal Days sale. It’s our answer to Prime Day — Black Friday in the summer, if you will. That means you don’t have long to snap it up. This price is only available through July 14 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific (while supplies last).

Want to see the world without being stung by the skyrocketing costs of flights? There’s a simple hack to save serious bucks on your summer vacation, and it comes in the form of getting alerts on ultra-low flight deals. Dollar Flight Club does precisely that. And right now, you can grab a Premium Plus+ lifetime subscription for only $59.97 (regularly $1,690), with no coupon necessary.

This discount on lifetime access to DFC’s Premium Plus+ plan is only available during our exciting Deal Days campaign — our version of Prime Day. So, you’ll have to act fast since this deal only lasts until July 14 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific!

The number of Apple TV+ subscribers has more than tripled in the past two years, according to data from a market-analysis firm.

Apple’s streaming service now sits in the middle of the pack in the battle against competitors like Netflix, Hulu and Disney+.

Everybody loves to eat a nice dinner out on the town, but have you checked restaurant prices lately? Outrageous! However, a limited-time discount can save you a lot of money when dining out.

For a limited time, you can get two $100 gift certificates to Restaurant.com for just $20 (regularly $200)! Grab it now during Deal Days — our version of Prime Day — where you can get special pricing on tech, software and services.

SwitchEasy makes an array of cool bands for Apple Watch in different styles and with various materials, from stretchy nylon to stainless steel mesh. In the SwitchEasy Flash Sale, the Cult of Mac Store has four excellent choices on sale for 20% off the regular prices through July 3.

Check out all four SwitchEasy bands for Apple Watch below.

Monitor mounts and the like may not be terribly glamorous or exciting, but they can do an awful lot for a computer setup.

Today’s featured MacBook Pro workstation uses them to make the laptop and two other crucial pieces of hardware easy to move around. And they keep the hardware off the desk, creating space for other items.

Canada’s 2,000 wildfires made news all over the United States when the resulting smoke drifted south in June. The fires burned more than 14 million acres, serving as a wake-up call for heightened attention to wildfire preparedness — especially because the United States is no stranger to its own conflagrations, with more than 72,000 communities at risk.

The Arzopa Portable Monitor A1C is a 15.6-inch, 1080P monitor ready to be connected to a Mac, iPad or gaming device over USB-C or HDMI. Given its relatively low price, the screen is one of the better options available for those on a tight budget.

It’s currently available at a price below $100, which is significantly lower than the cost of rival products.

I tested the portable display in my home office and on a recent vacation. Here’s what I found.

The dark comedy High Desert will not be returning to Apple TV+. The series starring Patricia Arquette earned generally positive comments from critics and viewers, but perhaps didn’t find a big audience.

Arquette herself made the announcement Sunday.

Cyberattacks can put you at risk of losing money, personal data and more. But you can protect your family from cybercrime with a top-rated VPN and firewall, like this Deeper Connect Pico decentralized VPN, which also comes with a Wi-FI adapter. Right now, you can grab this package for only $139.99 (regularly $248), no coupon needed. That’s this VPN bundle’s lowest price ever.

So, why so low? It’s all part of our epic Deal Days summer sale. It’s our version of Prime Day, where you can grab some incredible items at awesomely low prices. You’ll have to move quickly to grab this deal, though. It only lasts until July 14 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific!

Apple reportedly made hefty cuts to its production goals for the Vision Pro due to the headset’s complex design, which makes mass production a challenge.

Announced at WWDC23 in June, Apple’s mixed-reality headset will go on sale in early 2024. So the company has more than a few months to sort out these manufacturing challenges.

Apple is exploring adding health-focused features to future versions of AirPods Pro, including sensors that measure body temperature. The company also is working on features that would make the earbuds a viable hearing aid replacement, including an advanced hearing test to evaluate the wearer’s capabilities.

Apple also reportedly plans to transition the AirPods Pro’s charging case from Lightning to USB-C this year. This could happen alongside the iPhone 15 series in September.

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: While it’s no big shock that Apple continues to work on new Macs and iPads, two new products reportedly in the pipeline actually do sound surprising — and surprisingly tempting. What are they? An iMac with a big, beautiful 30-inch-plus screen, and a next-gen Apple Watch Ultra.

Where do we place our preorders?

Also on The CultCast:

• A purported iPhone 15 Pro Max case leak makes us extra worried about that huger-than-huge camera bump. How much is too much?
• Apple bumps up iCloud+ pricing in some places, but refuses to offer bigger storage options. Erfon is not amused.
• The EU keeps writing new regulations designed to rein in tech companies. Ill-advised or efficacious?
• Our giveaway this week is for anyone who craves a clutter-free desk.
• And finally … a new edition of “What We’re Into.” Griffin talks up an impressive new car, while Erfon and I fixate on the same Apple TV+ sci-fi show.

Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video live stream, embedded below.

For anyone who looked at the $3,500 price on the Apple Vision Pro and thought “that is so cheap,” Caviar has a version that’s over ten times as expensive. This specially modified AR headset is plated in gold and has a leather head strap.

Caviar even modified the design to make wearing the device a bit more private.