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iPhone could get periscope lens after 48-megapixel camera upgrade

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iPhone camera
Periscope lenses could allow 10x optical zoom in iPhone 15.
Photo: Apple/Cult of Mac

iPhone will get a periscope camera lens for the first time in 2023 after a 48-megapixel sensor upgrade next year, according to one analyst. The periscope lens should allow for significantly greater optical zoom.

A number of iPhone rivals are now using this technology to allow photographers to take more detailed snaps of their subjects. Samsung’s flagship Galaxy S21 Ultra is capable of 10x optical zoom, while iPhone 13 Pro maxes out at 3x.

And the 2021 award for Most Fastidious Cable Management goes to … [Setups]

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The Uplift standing desk and its accessories helped a lot with reducing cable clutter.
The Uplift standing desk and its accessories helped a lot with reducing cable clutter.
Photo: [email protected]

OK, so no 2021 award for Most Fastidious Cable Management, mentioned in this article’s headline, exists — at least not around here. But if it did, we might hand it to the person behind today’s setup.

It centers on a 2020 13-inch MacBook Pro and a 32-inch LG 4K display. And it keeps cable clutter to an extreme minimum.

Apple’s next-gen ‘M2’ chipset could land in 2022 before even faster ‘M2 Pro’

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Apple M2 chipset
Does this mean Apple won't hit its two-year target for ditching Intel?
Image: Apple/Cult of Mac

Apple will introduce its next-generation “M2” chipset for Mac next year, followed by an even more powerful “M2 Pro” in 2023, according to a new report. Both are expected to use TSMC’s new 4-nanometer manufacturing process.

The report somewhat contradicts Apple’s plan to do away with Intel and transition all Mac models to custom chipsets within two years. That’s if Apple waits for the “M2 Pro” before updating high-end machines like the Mac Pro.

Get this award-winning PDF editing software for Mac for just $30

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Edit PDFs with simplicity and ease with this award-winning software.
Never struggle to deal with a PDF again.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

PDFs aren’t the most exciting thing in the world. However, a good PDF reader can turn any PDF into a customizable canvas for you to add your notes, comments or changes.

PDF Expert, an award-winning PDF editing app for Mac, is the ideal tool for anyone looking to do more with PDFs than simply look at them. And, it’s on sale for just $29.99. Use this intuitive software to read and edit PDFs with ease.

Apple tests improved Music app for Mac — here’s how to try it out now

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Apple Music
It's a lot faster than before.
Image: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

Apple is testing an improved version of its Music app that’s built to run entirely natively on Mac. Parts of the app, such as the music library, were native on macOS before, and now the rest of it is catching up for improved performance.

You can try out the new Music app now by installing the macOS 12.2 Monterey beta, which is available to all through Apple’s public Beta Software Program.

This digital microscope for smartphones is the ultimate gift for science fans

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Grab this awesome digital microscope which connects to your phone on sale with 20% off now.
Simply connect this microscope to an iPhone, iPad or Mac to see incredible things.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Your iPhone can do a lot of smart things, but did you know it can become an awesome microscope? All you need is this WiFi Digital Microscope, which you can grab on sale today for just $55.95. That’s a 20% discount off the regular price of $69.

Hot deals on photo gear, software and courses

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Launch your photography with these top deals.
If you want to make great pictures and videos, you need the right hardware, software and knowledge.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

If you’re looking for a way to instantly improve your photography chops, and maybe even launch your own side hustle, you need to zoom in on these 10 helpful bundles. They’re chock-full of photo accessories, image-editing apps and educational courses that will get you started or take your photography (or videography) to a higher level.

Whether you need help selecting the best lens for portraits, need a brand-new setup for your in-home studio, or want the ultimate app to help you perfect your pix, we rounded up the best tools to help you take beautiful photos without any formal training.

Get a lifetime of streaming documentaries and VPN protection at 87% off

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Unlock unlimited movies and TV shows for life with this documentary streaming service and VPN bundle, now less than $250.
Grab this top-rated documentary streaming service and award-winning VPN for life for less than $250 today.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

If you’ve run out of great new TV series and films to stream, we’ve found the ultimate deal. Right now, you can grab a MagellanTV Documentary Streaming Service & KeepSolid VPN Unlimited Lifetime Subscription on sale for just $249.

That’s an 87% discount off the combined regular price of $1,995.

We’re already salivating about iPhone 14 [The CultCast]

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The CultCast, a weekly Apple podcast: New iPhone 14 rumors get us excited about 2022.
New iPhone 14 rumors get us excited about 2022.
Image: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: Our 2022 hopes are up, up and away on the latest rumors about what new features iPhone 14 Pro might bring. The camera sounds like it will once again deliver impressive gains, but it’s the potential for an iPhone 4-style makeover that’s really got us drooling.

Also on The CultCast:

  • New Apple displays on the horizon?
  • Dying AirPods … and amazing deals on replacements.
  • Alex E. Heath’s goggle-eyed moment during his interview with The Matrix stars.
  • More of our product picks in Gear of the Year.

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.

Create your own streaming studio with this $20 double ring light setup

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This double ring light streaming studio is the perfect gift for budding social media stars, less than $20 today.
Take your video calls to the next level with this portable home streaming studio, less than $20 today.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

If you want to take your videos to the next level, it’s time to upgrade the lighting you’re filming with. For a limited time, you can pick up the Aduro U-Stream Junior Twins Home Streaming Studio W/Dual Ring Lights on sale for just $19.99 — that’s a 60% discount off the regular price of $49.

Swagger’s stirring season finale goes down to the wire [Apple TV+ recap]

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Swagger season finale recap: What a way to end a season!
What a way to end a season!
Photo: Apple TV+

Team Swagger goes to the nationals in the stunning finale of Apple TV+’s incredible show about a basketball team and its players and satellites. Reggie Rock Bythewood and the incredible team of Swagger writers are prepared to send Ike, Jace, Jenna, Crystal and the rest of the team out with a bang.

A season’s worth of innuendo and tension is about to be unearthed and made real.

This sleek MacBook leather sleeve makes a perfect holiday gift

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This leather sleeve offers luxe MacBook protection.
Protect your MacBook with this luxurious leather sleeve.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Sometimes a simple, high-quality and ultra-useful gift is the one that cuts through all the noise of holiday shopping. This MacBook Leather Sleeve is made from a single piece of beautiful, vegetable-tanned, full-grain leather. And it makes the perfect gift (for yourself or others).

Not only will it keep your MacBook fully protected against daily wear and tear, but it also makes for a sophisticated statement in terms of in-office accessories.

The verdict is in at last on The Shrink Next Door [Apple TV+ recap]

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The Shrink Next Door recap: Dr. Ike finally gets what he's got coming.
Dr. Ike (played by Paul Rudd) never really gets what he deserves.
Photo: Apple TV+

Apple TV+’s The Shrink Next Door, starring Will Ferrell and Paul Rudd, mercifully comes to a close this week after eight very long episodes. Marty goes looking for the missing pieces of his life after 30 years under Ike’s care, and finds a lot of dead ends.

Can he repair his life after so long messing everything up? It’s an open question whether he, or anyone around him, will be willing to forgive him. This series finally parts ways with its central pair and lets them both off with a warning, in the grand scheme of things.

Home Widget is the HomeKit widget Apple doesn’t make [Review]

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Home Widget review
Home Widget lets you make your own HomeKit widgets.
Photo: Clément Marty

With Home Widget, it’s now possible to control your HomeKit accessories directly from your iPhone’s Home screen. Turn on and off lights or even run automated scenes with the quick push of a button. With the new app, you can make a bunch of HomeKit widgets to meet your needs.

I put Home Widget to the test in my smart house. I’m generally pleased with its usability.

The kids are alright as Dickinson approaches its poetic finale [Apple TV+ recap]

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Dickinson recap: The kids are alright.
The Dickinson siblings work things out.
Photo: Apple TV+

Reconciliations abound and new beginnings rear their heads on the penultimate episode of Dickinson, the alt-history Apple TV+ series about the great poet and her family and friends. And the show prepares to say goodbye in fine, fine form.

Dickinson finally answers its loose-end questions about Emily Dickinson’s place in history (and, indeed, the place of art and poetry in a more general sense). The show finally explores what it means to want to create during a destructive time — and it’s a shame the showrunners won’t be able to do more after landing in such a beautiful place. There’s still some sitcom business, but that’s less important.

Ghostly white M1 Mac mini centers a ‘sacrilegious’ sound machine [Setups]

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Everything is white, even the M1 Mac mini. But how did that happen? Apple doesn't make it in white.
Everything is white, even the M1 Mac mini. But how did that happen? Apple doesn't make it in white.
Photo: [email protected]

If you look up “11.11” in the Slang Dictionary, it says, “If it’s 11:11, make a wish! Some people believe 11:11 is a magic number or lucky time of day, good for making a wish … or reaching cosmic enlightenment.” Well, if something’s enlightened, or at least en-whitened, it’s today’s Mac mini-based setup.

It’s all there in black and white, really, with “11.11” writ large on the dual displays — probably via the Fliqlo screensaver, though it could be a clock app — and Nintendo gaming consoles aplenty.

Year-end promotion: Get $14 Windows 10 Pro and a free upgrade to Windows 11

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At CDKeylord.com, you can pay about $14 for a Windows 10 Pro key, then upgrade to Windows 11 for free!
At CDKeylord.com, you can pay about $14 for a Windows 10 Pro key, then upgrade to Windows 11 for free!
Photo: CDKeylord.com

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

In its year-end promotion, software seller CDKeylord.com offers good deals for the taking. Cult of Mac readers can get 35% off the regular price of a Genuine Lifetime Windows 10 Pro key and many other product-activation keys. And when you buy a Windows 10 key, you can get a free upgrade to Windows 11! Just enter the special discount code CULT at checkout.

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

‘Tis the season for massive AirPods deals [Updated]

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‘Tis the season for massive AirPods savings
There’s never been a better time to buy AirPods.
Photo: Cult of Mac

AirPods make great gifts … especially when they’re nearly half off. You can get AirPods 2 for less than $90. That’s as low as they’ve ever been.

And there are deals on every type of Apple’s signature earbuds with significant savings. Even on the newest model.

Boost your productivity with more than 200 top-rated Mac apps for less than $70

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Be more productive than ever before with this service of 200+ Mac apps, now less than $70 for a whole year.
It’s your last chance to get the top-rated "Netflix of Mac apps" at this low price.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Which Mac apps do you subscribe to — and which would you like to try out, but can’t justify the expense? How about one low-priced subscription that gives you access to more than 200 killer Mac apps?

That’s the concept behind Setapp, dubbed “the Netflix of Mac apps,” and this week is your last chance to grab a one-year subscription for just $69. That’s a 36% discount off the regular price of $107.

Apple begins testing macOS 12.2 with smoother ProMotion scrolling

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Apple begins testing macOS 12.2 with smoother ProMotion performance
macOS Monterey 12.2 beta 1 is out with some welcome improvements.
Photo: Cult of Mac

Apple began testing macOS Monterey 12.2 beta 1 on Thursday, just days after the release of macOS 12.1. An official list of what’s coming in the new version hasn’t yet been revealed by the Mac-maker, but tests with beta 1 have turned up a few changes. The much-anticipated Universal Control isn’t one of them, though.

This pre-release version seeded to developers was not accompanied by any iOS, iPadOS or watchOS betas on Thursday.

Keep your coffee hot and your phone charged with this set

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Charge your battery and keep your cup warm with this 2-in-1.
This two-in-one gadget keeps your drink hot and your phone at 100%.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

There are few things more pleasant than a hot cup of coffee and work you know you can actually get done. The only thing better is when your cup stays perfectly hot and your phone is ready for you when you’re done working.

And that’s what you get with the Ui 2-in-1 Self-Heating Mug & Wireless Charging Pad Set. This double feature keeps your drink hot and your phone charged, and it’s on sale for $84.95 (regularly $94).

New Echo 5 Thunderbolt 4 hub expands Mac and iPad Pro connectivity

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The new Echo 5 Thunderbolt 4 hub provides 85W of charging power.
The new Echo 5 Thunderbolt 4 hub provides 85W of charging power.
Photo: Sonnet Technologies

Sonnet Technologies rolled out its new Echo 5 Thunderbolt 4 Hub on Tuesday to enable Mac and iPad Pro users — or anyone with a Thunderbolt 3 or 4 port on their machine — to expand their connectivity to peripherals like displays, input devices and storage. And it offers a robust 85W of charging power.

When you get a computer or tablet and it has fewer ports than you’d like, hubs like this one can come in handy.

Apple staffs up to make its own wireless chips

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An Apple 5G modem might look like this
Apple is hiring experts to design 5G, Wi-FI and Bluetooth chips for its computers.
Artists concept: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Apple is reportedly hiring at a new office in Irvine, California, where the company will make 5G modems and other wireless chips for future devices.

It’s the latest move by Apple to expand the number of critical components for its products that it produces in-house.