Black Bird, the Apple TV+ drama about a bad guy sent to ferret out a worse guy in the rottenest jail in America, takes a turn for the confessional this week. Probable serial killer Larry Hall and police informer Jimmy Keene tell each other some truths and some lies as they clean up the mess after a prison riot.

Larry starts to see the hidden side of Jimmy. And Jimmy starts to recognize the worst parts of himself — the ones that remind him of Larry. Black Bird’s been in a good place for two and a half episodes, and this latest one finds the show indulging in its strengths for an extended conversation between the two leads.

Anyone with multiple devices knows the chore of tangled wires. Maybe it’s time to change that. This week we are teaming up with Ugreen to give two lucky winners a shot at winning a sleek 3-in-1 MagSafe Wireless Charging Station, retailing at $159.99, plus a six-port Nexode 200W USB-C Desktop Charger priced at $199.99.

Enter below for your chance to win one of these powerful bundles.

As much technology as we have, it’s still hard to land in a foreign country and ask someone where the bathroom is. From ancient Sumerian to Google Translate, language has been used to connect civilizations. And for that whole time, a universal means of communication could have been really helpful.

The Noun Project is working to create a global visual language composed of simple, easily understandable icons. And right now, you can gain access to its entire library of 5 million icons at a reduced price. Purchase five years of unlimited access to the Noun Project library for $79.99 (regularly $199).

Apple TV+ comedy Loot goes on two dates this week. Molly, the billionaire who’s discovering what it’s like to have a conscience, has a suitor. And Nicholas learns the meaning of friendship when he comes to Howard’s aid.

As usual, the show’s niceties undercut its comedy every step of the way. And that’s a problem when you’re writing a sitcom starring America’s funniest woman.

HEROish from Sunblink challenges layers to, “(almost) save the world and (kind of) look good while doing it.” The latest addition to Apple Arcade offers single-player adventures, but it’s also player-versus-player deck-building tower defense game.

The fantasy-themed title is available now for a variety of Apple computers, including iPhone and Mac.

Worried that the U.S. government is trying to make sure emergency alerts it sends to smartphones are working — and you don’t even know about it?

Well, now you can make sure you receive those test alerts thanks to a new toggle Apple added to iOS 15.6 and the third iOS 16 beta.

For All Mankind spins its wheels this week until a catastrophe in the back half of the episode. Danny’s losing it. Ed’s being Ed. Jimmy commits some low-level espionage. Ellen and Larry find themselves under a microscope. Aleida closes in on the truth. And Margo is losing everything.

A surprise cameo from one of history’s greatest monsters reinforces the lack of imagination on the part of a show whose only job is to imagine greater things.

A letter from progressive members of the U.S. House of Representatives this week urged Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to call for votes soon on a pair of antitrust bills that would rein in the power of tech giants like Apple and Google in an attempt to open up competition from more companies.

Without votes “in the next few weeks,” lawmakers’ upcoming months-long recess could delay action considerably.

Designer and Apple maven Basic Apple Guy offered a delightful surprise Friday with his new “Apple Stage” wallpaper for Mac, iPad and iPhone.

The stunning rainbow wallpaper sports a design inspired by the real-life, six-color stage structure created by Cupertino design legend Jony Ive at Apple Park.

This week on Physical, Sheila goes on the lam with Vincent Green in a drug-fueled, disco-scored bonding session.

The wheels on the Sheila Rubin’s aerobics train are clearly about to fall off — and she’s not even going to have the voice in her head to comfort her when all is said and done. It’s another annoying week filled with failed attempts at humor and humanity on Apple TV+’s fizzling ’80s flashback show.

We like Friday Setups posts to be on the fun side. We look for entertaining gear, wacky decor and exotic locations. Today we found a Dutch guy who works in IT management via his M1 iMac.

That doesn’t sound especially fun, but he also wields a pretty badass electric guitar.

He runs the axe into a Focusrite audio interface and listens to his musical creations on a killer set of cans, too.

This discount software activation keys post is presented by CDKeylord.com.

In CDKeylord.com’s Cool Summer Sale, you can get great savings on software, games and gaming accessories. The software activation key provider offers big discounts on genuine products from Microsoft and other developers.

Cult of Mac readers can get 30% off the regular price of a Windows 10 Pro key. Also, when you buy a Windows 10 key, you can get a free upgrade to Windows 11! Just enter the special discount code CULT when you check out to secure the great savings below.

Apple has dropped its lawsuit against Chicago’s “Netflix tax” after the two parties reached a settlement. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

Chicago introduced a 9% tax on streaming platform subscribers in 2015. Apple sued the city in 2018 for allegedly violating the federal Internet Tax Freedom Act and the U.S. Constitution.

Trying, the Apple TV+ series that is the Full House to Ted Lasso’s Coach, returns this week for a richly unwarranted third season.

The show, a smug and naggingly pleasant look at two well-to-do narcissists who want to raise children for some reason, finally fulfills Jason and Nikki’s dream of parenthood after watching them not earn it for two long seasons.

Indeed there’s nothing unique or likable or notable at all about these two characters. Let’s see what happens to them now that they’ve brought a pair of children into their London home.

Inflation may be the worst, but do you know what could make it better? Sitting down with your family or friends and putting together a relaxing puzzle to make those money issues melt away for a moment. If it doesn’t, then maybe winning a big pile of money will!

Mschf is back with another chance to win big with The 2 Million Dollar Puzzle. Act fast, and you could get your chance to win a million dollars for only $24.99 with free shipping — the sale lasts through July 27.

Apple seemingly diversified its supply chain by adding a new component supplier for the iPhone 14 lineup. Chinese company SG Micro has acquired the necessary certifications to supply components for the high-end iPhone 14 Pro series.

The move comes as Apple looks to avoid disruptions in its supply chain due to external factors.

Have you ever wanted to build games like the ones you fell in love with when you first started playing? Learning to design your own titles might be more involved than playing them, but that doesn’t mean you can’t do it.

It just means you should study with a resource like The Game Design & Development Bundle. This seven-course training can help you learn Unity, Maya and more game dev tools. And for a limited time, it’s on sale for $203 (regularly $1,519).

With Apple in the antitrust spotlight both abroad and in the U.S., Cupertino is spending more than it ever has before on political lobbying.

And CEO Tim Cook has become one of the most politically active tech executives in the country.

Back in May, Cult of Mac wrote about wait times for Studio Display shipments stretching into August. But now, four months after Cupertino rolled out the $1,600 monitor, shipping-time estimates are dropping fast in many countries, including the U.S.

Apple’s 2021 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro are down to their lowest prices on Amazon. You can get the models with a whopping $300 discount.

The entry-level 16-inch MacBook Pro is available for just $2,199, down 12% from its retail price of $2,499.

In 1976, Apple co-founder Steve Jobs demonstrated a prototype Apple-1 computer to the owner of The Byte Shop. That lead to a deal that launched Apple on its path to success.

That prototype is now up for auction. It’s expected to sell for $500,000.

Cupertino sent out a new summer-themed Apple Pay promotion Thursday with special deals on clothing, shoes, accessories and more. You can get up to 70% off items from GOAT and significant discount from a dozen other retailers. That means you can get the crazy-looking Yeezy 450 ‘Sulfur’ sneakers for $157 (regularly $200).

The discounts come from popular stores like Crocs, Ray-Ban, J.Crew, Lands’ End, Gymboree, Matt & Nat, The RealReal and others. Hit the links below.

When you spend a pretty penny on an iPhone 13 — OK, more like a thousand bucks, probably — you realize you better protect the dearly expensive gadget. Good thing SwitchEasy features all the accessories you need. You have your choice of cases, plus screen protectors and more.

And best of all, you can get 20% off all SwitchEasy iPhone 13 accessories in the Cult of Mac Store. But you need to act fast: This sale ends at 11:59 p.m. PDT on July 21.

The Satechi USB-C Slim Dock for 24-inch iMac sits on the stand for Apple’s all-in-one desktop and adds six frequently used ports. It also sports an enclosure for user-installed SSDs.

The hub and drive enclosure has been in my home office for several days. Here’s what it’s like to use in the real world.

July 21, 2011: Apple officially passes Nokia to become the world’s top smartphone vendor.

It’s a major milestone for Apple, which launched the iPhone just four years earlier. For Nokia, the Finnish company that dominated the cellphone market during the 1990s and early 2000s, it marks the end of an era.