Ask someone for their New Year’s resolution, and there’s a decent chance you could tell them their answer before they do. That’s because most of us are thinking about the same areas of self-improvement each year. There’s exercising, losing weight, and getting organized. Another top 5 resolution: learning a new skill … like maybe a languae.

Of course, nobody wants to be slaving away on a New Year’s resolution by early summer. So, the Babbel Language Learning App gives users the chance to knock it out in three weeks.

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: Apple code once again refers to a mysterious “realityOS” for a virtual/augmented-reality headset. Vague rumors about the new device, which we’ve been hearing for years now, look set to become very real, very soon.

Also on The CultCast:

• Why no Face ID on Macs?
• Apple’s workaround for accepting third-party payments is a joke, but developers definitely aren’t laughing.
• iPhones are about to become cash registers!

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 livestream, embedded below.

Who said Valentine’s Day is all about flowers and chocolate? We may be biased, but you know what really sets our hearts aflutter? Game-changing Mac and iOS apps that make our Apple devices more productive and our days even easier.

So, if you want to treat yourself to something you’ll fall in love with this year, may we suggest some of the very best apps around? These all come highly rated by experts and users alike. And right now, you can take an extra 15% off their sale prices when you enter the code VDAY2022 at checkout.

Now that’s enough to set pulses racing.

The Afterparty, Apple TV+’s Rashomon-style comedy of perspectives, finally looks back at the party before the party. Outkast is on the stereo, the cast get bad haircuts, and everyone makes embarrassing mistakes. Could this explain Xavier’s death?

The show hasn’t done much to engender any good will toward its cast of characters, and this week’s stunt episode doesn’t help things. The Afterparty seems quite taken with the idea of the cast reliving their glory days. But the sight of them all looking younger isn’t quite the gas the writers and director Chris Miller seem to think it is.

If you’ve been thinking about buying a camera drone to take stunning aerial photography, now is the time to do it. That’s not just because you can grab great prices these days on refurbished high-spec tech like this Vivitar VTI Phoenix Foldable Drone. Or even because this particular model is on sale right now.

Now’s the time to pull the trigger on a camera drone because in Cult of Mac Deals’ Valentine’s Day Sale, you can drive down the low sale price even further. You can take an extra 15% off when you enter the code VDAY2022 at checkout.

That means you can scoop up this drone for just $135.15. And that’s more than $100 off the regular price of $249.

Servant conjures up a storm in a teacup this week on Apple TV+. Leanne, the nanny with strange powers, finds herself losing control just as the desperate family she’s here to save needs her most.

Threatened by creeps, stalkers, and pretenders, Leanne has little choice but to let bad things happen to bad people. Writer Laura Marks and director Dylan Holmes Williams create a memorably harrowing half-hour in this week’s episode, entitled “Ring.”

Just a day after Apple touted its beefed-up privacy precautions for AirTags — in the wake of criminal incidents involving the tracking devices — an article in The New York Times on Friday showed their superiority to Tile and GPS trackers.

A reporter tracked her husband using all three kinds of devices. She found the AirTags not only better at tracking him in an urban area, but also better at tipping him off to the tracking.

The Samsung Galaxy S22 has the best chip available for an Android smartphone, but it can’t keep up with Apple’s A-series processor in the iPhone 13 series. Apple’s flagship solidly beats Samsung’s new top-tier models in benchmark tests. It isn’t even close.

And this is despite the iPhone 13 coming out months ago.

Keep your beloved Apple Watch looking brand-new with the SwitchEasy protective bumper from just $14.99. Buy it with a band, such as the outstanding Steel Mesh — or any other SwitchEasy product — and enjoy a 50% discount on the more affordable product.

Made from a flexible but sturdy TPU, the bumper covers the back and sides of your Apple Watch to keep them free from dents, dirt, scratches, and shattered screens.

The Sky Is Everywhere, the new Apple TV+ film based on the young adult novel by Jandy Nelson, is exactly what you’re picturing based on its title.

Director Josephine Decker steps away from the indie film world to embrace the things a big studio budget can afford (in this case A24 as well as Apple). And she makes sure that every cent is up there on the screen. Decker gives in too much to the sugar high of teen romance, but she and her very committed cast get an A for effort.

An increasing number of Mac users say Zoom is using their machine’s microphone even when the app is not in use.

Zoom rolled out an update last December for its native Mac app that supposedly resolved “an issue regarding the microphone light indicator being triggered when not in a meeting.” But it doesn’t appear to have worked.

Blogger Derek Seaman may be an IT systems architect in his day job, but he also designs and builds advanced computer setups. That is, if his home office is any indication. Which it is.

He shared his MacBook Pro-driven workstation — actually, the whole room — with Cult of Mac recently.

This discount software activation keys post is brought to you by CDKeylord.com.

In its Valentine’s Day Sale, software seller CDKeylord.com offers more unbeatable deals on genuine Microsoft software. Cult of Mac readers can get 30% off the regular price of a Windows 10 Pro key. And 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 grab the exceptional savings.

See currently available discounts on various Microsoft software titles in the list below.

If you’ve ever tried saving Nintendo Switch screenshots to your iPhone or iPad, you’ll know it’s a less than seamless experience. It seems Nintendo didn’t put a great deal of thought into designing its rather primitive transfer tool.

Fortunately, someone else did. Developer Filip Němeček has built an app called SwitchBuddy that makes fetching your Switch screenshots on iPhone and iPad faster, easier, and much more enjoyable. Here’s how to use it.

New Apple TV+ thriller Suspicion spends some quality time with its suspected kidnappers this week. As Natalie’s alibis and facades begin to crumble, Aadesh’s life falls apart. Meanwhile, Katherine, Anderson and Vanessa all get impatient for breaks in the case.

This week’s well-acted and tightly paced episode is all about the little lies we tell to help our families — and what happens when we run out of convincing ones.

Want to jump into the app-building world and don’t know where to start? With The Complete Mobile & App Development Bundle, you’ll learn everything there is to know about app design with top-notch courses.

And just in time for Valentine’s Day, we’ve got a deal you’ll love on a soup-to-nuts coding bundle that normally goes for $1,791. For a limited time, you can get it for just $38.24.

Xiaomi is in “a war of life and death” with iPhone, according to the company’s CEO, and the only way it’s going to regain its position as the top smartphone-maker in China is by matching Apple’s “product and experience.”

The Chinese company was once famous for taking a little too much inspiration from Apple and rolling out copycat products. It has (mostly) moved away from that in recent years, and it hasn’t helped its market share.

Apple faces a new class-action lawsuit from owners of the latest iPad mini, who apparently aren’t happy with its “jelly scroll defect.”

The lawsuit claims Cupertino acted “in an unethical, unscrupulous, outrageous, oppressive, and substantially injurious manner” by promoting a device that it supposedly knew to be defective. It seeks damages for every iPad mini owner.

Apple recommends iPhone and iPad users install a system software update released on Thursday. It removes a security hole on all web browsers, and also includes an accessibility fix.

There are also fresh updates for watchOS as well as macOS available.

Want to stay safe and anonymous online? You can secure up to 10 devices at once with WeVPN, a virtual private network that doesn’t log your data.

WeVPN protects you and your data from the people and organizations that would track it and sell it. And right now, you can get a two-year WeVPN subscription for just $64.95 (regularly $268).

Those in the market for fast charging on the go, take note. On Tuesday, mobile charging specialist Excitrus launched its new 100W Magnetic Wireless Portable Charger, featuring a 20800mAh battery and MagSafe compatibility.

Apple said in a statement Thursday it will update AirTags item trackers with new privacy warnings, better warning sounds and smarter Find My tracking. The efforts comes as the company tries to improve security in the wake of criminal activity involving the devices, such as theft and stalking.

To make sure your AirTag has the latest security improvements, check for the AirTag update regularly.

Intel-based Mac users can stop worrying about a frustrating Bluetooth bug that causes excessive battery drain. macOS Monterey 12.2.1, released Thursday, fixes the problem.

Apple also introduced iOS 15.3.1 and iPadOS 15.3.1 to fix a bug with Braille screens. And watchOS 8.4.2 is out, too.

Possibly the only downside of AirPods is that they can break or get lost. You can customize your Apple earbuds, and make them last longer, with a four-piece AirPods accessory kit from Chargeworx.

This kit, which works with AirPods Pro as well as third-gen AirPods, comes with four items that combat common problems. And right now, it’s on sale for $22.99, a full 54% off the regular price of $49.

If you’d like to improve your experience using HomeKit-enabled accessories on iOS, it might be time to try Home Widget for HomeKit. It already provides quick access to the Home app from your Home Screen, and it got a refresh on Wednesday, adding sensor support, different panel sizes and more.