In a lot of ways, your Mac is only as good as the apps you have on it. You can buy a top-of-the-line M1 Max MacBook Pro that’s barely better than a paperweight if you don’t own the software to take advantage of those insane specs.

The Complete Limited Edition Mac Bundle gives you lifetime access to many of the most useful apps around. And during our Pre-Black Friday Sale, you can get this bundle of fantastic Mac apps — worth more than $1,000 if bought individually — for just $17.99 with coupon code MACBUNDLE40.

Apple is offering customers up to $200 back in Apple Store gift cards when they buy eligible products this Black Friday. Its four-day shopping event runs from November 26, and you can enjoy in in-store, online, and over the phone.

Find out what you’ll get back on certain products right here.

Apple’s next-generation iMac Pro could feature an “M1 Max Duo” chip with 20 cores for processing and up to 64 for graphics, according to a new report.

As its name suggests, the chipset is expected to consist of two M1 Max chips combined together for double the performance. It could also feature up to 128GB of RAM — twice that currently available from Apple’s latest machines.

Learning a new language not only helps open up new career opportunities abroad. It also can tremendously improve your problem-solving and cognition skills. Babbel is one of the most highly rated language learning apps out there, earning 4.6 stars out of 5 stars after almost 30,000 reviews on the App Store (and rave reviews from publications like PCMag and The Economist).

For only two weeks, you can get this great language app for its lowest price yet — just $179 (regularly $499) for a lifetime subscription to all available languages.

If you’re looking to effortlessly convert and resize videos, watch your favorite DVDs on your iPad, or seamlessly transfer files between your iPhone, iPad and Mac, look no further than this lifetime license for the MacX Media Management Bundle.

This comprehensive three-app bundle offers ways to work with all sorts of media using your favorite Apple devices. Plus, you can enjoy an extra 30% off this pre-Black Friday doorbuster with coupon code APPS30.

Your files and your data are two things you shouldn’t have to compromise when you go online. With this pre-Black Friday deal on the The Lifetime Backup & Security Subscription Bundle, you can keep your files safe and your data private for $62.99 (regularly $3,799) with code APPS30.

It gives you a massive 10 terabytes of cloud storage to keep all your files safe, and a virtual private network to protect your data and anonymity online — forever!

When Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher was slapped with war crimes charges in 2018, the allegations made a public spectacle of the inexcusable, overzealous violence that had been a staple of U.S. military intervention in Iraq since the first years of the invasion post-9/11.

What followed brought the wrong kind of attention to military operations at a time when the United States needed to sell its continuing involvement in Iraq. In new Apple TV+ series The Line, directors Jeff Zimbalist and Doug Shultz adapt the podcast of the same name as a four-part documentary.

In it, we hear testimony from everyone who felt comfortable stepping forward to talk about really happened in Mosul, where Gallagher led a sniper team and committed acts that shocked his fellow war fighters. And yet the filmmakers ultimately fail to ask the questions that really matter.

A sharp rise in Apple’s share price allowed the Mac-maker to regain the title of publicly traded company with the highest market capitalization n the world. It beat out Microsoft, who’d held the top spot for less than a month.

An unconfirmed report of Apple’s aggressive plans to make self-driving cars helped drive a 6% increase over the past week.

You won‘t need a MacBook with an HDMI port if you have Plugable’s USB-C to HDMI cable. Just run the cable between the external display and your Mac or iPad and you have 4K@60Hz. Even better, it’s currently available at a discount that drops the price to less than $17.

I tested this accessory in my home office to be sure it lives up to its promises.

Whether you’re constantly on the move and need a quick way to pack your charging essentials or just want to make the most out of the minimal space you have, this 3-in-1 Apple Watch, AirPods & iPhone Charging Cable lets you charge two Lightning devices and your Apple Watch all at the same time.

If you’re a traveler looking to pack light and stay organized, or just want a simple charging accessory you can toss into your bag to be set for the day, this is the most effective cord you could get.

COVID-19 makes its debut in this week’s Swagger, the Baltimore-based Apple TV+ basketball drama inspired by the experiences of Kevin Durant in the junior leagues.

In the episode, titled “All on the Line,” Jace and his teammates cover up a crime. Crystal exhales and figures out how she feels. And Jackie and Jenna have it out. Everyone’s at the top of their game in one of the best episodes of the season so far.

If you want to learn how to write software for Apple devices, you need to know Swift and SwiftUI. Knowing the ins and outs of Apple’s programming language, and its cross-platform user interface framework, means you can build apps that work on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and Apple TV.

And with this educational bundle, you can learn to design apps that are as beautiful as they are useful for just $19.99.

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: Just how well does a new $3,500 M1 Max MacBook Pro perform against a $15,000 Mac Pro that’s only two years old? The results from the latest tests and benchmarks are simply insane.

Also on The CultCast:

• Apple plans to make a totally autonomous car — with no steering wheel or pedals! And it might show up by 2025.
• Leander’s Cult of Mac, 2nd Edition coffee table book is on sale for just $9.99.
• And our favorite TV shows in an all-new “What We’re Into” segment.

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.

We’ve seen our aliens and we’ve got our heroes. Now what dreadful things await for Invasion’s terrified humans?

Apple TV+’s newest sci-fi show is having a pretty terrific season, all things considered. So now, with everyone on the same page, can the series sustain its relentless pace? Can the show’s creators continue this balancing act for the rest of the season?

What’s in that firmware update for a couple of AirPods that came out Tuesday. Who the hell knows?!? Apple doesn’t announce updates for its truly wireless headphones — and won’t tell anyone what’s in them. It’s very frustrating.

Apple’s attempt at making AirPods firmware updates simple instead makes them way more complicated than necessary. Currently, they happen in the background, but what’s really needed is an “Update Now” button.

The first season of Apple TV+’s epic space opera Foundation winds down this week with a drama-packed final episode.

Terminus has a big shiny weapon to use against the Empire, which is renewed in its conviction that all rebellion must be dealt with. Between a rock and a hard place is a human coffin that spouts wisdom like Yoda. Read on to find out what I mean by that.

Don’t tote your MacBook around without a case. It’s just not a good idea. SwitchEasy has a couple of new offerings that bring sleek protection while also adding some color. There’s the EasyStand MacBook Carry Case and the SwitchEasy Thins MacBook Sleeve.

Plus, the EasyStand case props up your laptop for more ergonomic typing.

In this week’s episode of Dr. Brain, neuroscientist Sewon Koh discovers a powerful ally as he chases new leads while searching for his son and his wife’s killer. Reality and the imaginary begin to blend in a way that suggest he soon may not be able to tell them apart.

Oh, and Sewon’s new ally? It’s in his brain! Apple TV+’s trippy new South Korean sci-fi/mystery series just keeps getting wilder.

On Thursday, accessories maker Belkin introduced its new Boost Charge Pro Portable Fast Charger for Apple Watch, one of the first third-party releases to support the fast charging speeds of the Apple Watch 7.

It’s an old-fashioned family sing-along on this week’s Dickinson, Apple TV+’s show about the Belle of Amherst and the tempestuous times in which she lived.

Lots of talk about legacy and darkness cloud an evening’s celebration during the episode, titled “Sang from the Heart, Sire.” Can Mr. Dickinson’s birthday party (or his reputation) survive?

You see a lot of people busting on each other for “flexing,” or bragging, about their computer setups shown in social media posts. We came across a doozy today with a dual-display setup bathed in a cool wash of color. But it’s not really about the double luxe displays; lots of people have that. It’s about the two expensive Mac Pros tucked under the desk.

Those hoping for a major Apple Watch overhaul could again be disappointed next year, with a new report claiming only minor design changes are planned for Apple Watch Series 8 — which could be almost identical to Series 7.

Many fans had expected an Apple Watch revamp this year after months and months of speculation and leaks. But it’s beginning to look like those weren’t just badly timed, but perhaps entirely inaccurate.

Have fun with your friends in Lego Star Wars: Castaways, the first social, action-adventure Lego Star Wars game. Players explore a mysterious new planet, fight in battle arenas, race through flight simulations or relax with a dance party.

The game launched Friday on the Apple Arcade gaming service.

Apple TV+ comedy The Shrink Next Door takes a step toward chaos and a step away from reconciliation this week. Marty and his psychiatrist, Ike, start a business together, which means they’re financially tied to each other. Marty has finally stopped giving in to everyone’s demands, but Ike is there to step in and replace every demanding person in Marty’s life.

This is not going to end well.

PDFs are one of the most commonly used file types in the workplace and beyond. If you’re a Mac user, you should have a way to open, edit, annotate and alter PDFs without needing to go to one of those ad-filled online PDF editors.

PDF Expert lets you edit PDFs as easily as Word docs. And this powerful Mac app is on sale now for just $29.99.