There are all sorts of reasons Apple doesn’t recommend that you drop your iPhone out of airplanes. But, if it does accidentally happen, you may not be totally out of luck.

A report from Brazilian news outlet G1 concerns filmmaker Ernesto Galiotto, who accidentally dropped his iPhone 6 out of a plane at a height of 984 feet. An accompanying video shows that Galiotto was trying to use the device to film over a beach 100 miles east of Rio de Janeiro, when it was whipped out of his hand and sent hurtling toward certain death.

Well, almost certain, that is!

Apple’s fancy AirPods Max headphones officially go on sale today, meaning that if you were lucky (or just organized) enough to have ordered them online right away, they should be winging their way to your home as you read this.

They are also available to buy in Apple Stores, although don’t expect plentiful supplies.

These days, you’re probably spending a lot of time in front of your computer, whether it’s for work, a passion project, binge-watching Netflix, or video-calling family and friends. Why limit yourself to a tiny laptop screen when you could expand your view (literally) with a second monitor? This Mobile Pixels DUEX Pro Portable Dual Monitor gives you all the convenience of a second screen, without the usual high price tag and lack of portability — so you can game, multitask, or just browse the web to your heart’s content.

Apple has launched a new repair program to fix iPhone 11 units that have faulty touchscreens. The company says only a “small percentage” of handsets is affected — but is yours one of them? Here’s how to find out.

The Apple TV app tries to do too much. It tries to be too much. And this lack of focus damages the Apple TV+ streaming service. Still, a design change in iOS 14.3 and the iPad equivalent makes it just a little bit easier for subscribers to find Apple TV+ shows and movies.

The small tweak doesn’t go far enough, though. It’s only a tiny step in the right direction. What’s truly needed is a dedicated Apple TV+ app.

Apple’s VO₂ max metric measures the performance of your heart and lungs when you push yourself to the limit. Up until now, though, it’s only been useful to serious fitness fanatics. No wonder Apple buried it in the Health app, where most users never found it.

But watchOS 7.2 and iOS 14.3, which Apple released Monday, change all that. In those updates, the VO₂ max metric has been renamed Cardio Fitness. Now it can detect lower ranges and send alerts when the reading gets too low. That makes it the latest in a series of potentially life-saving health notifications from Apple Watch.

Here’s everything you need to know to get the benefit of this essential new feature.

It’s a big day for Apple fans — there are software updates for iPhone, Mac, iPad, Apple Watch and Apple TV.

With an update, iPhone 12 Pro gets support for Apple’s new ProRAW image format. And all iPhone and iPads display new privacy info about third-party apps.

But primarily, the new versions are about adding support for AirPods Max and Apple Fitness+ to a range of operating systems. And bug fixes too.

With Apple Fitness+ set to launch Monday, a handful of early reviews say the subscription service is a winner that makes fitness fun.

If you’ve got an Apple Watch and access to gym equipment in your home, it’s practically a no-brainer at $9.99 a month. Could this be a Peloton beater?

Are you suffering from a case of Cyber Monday FOMO? Here’s a little dose of Christmas delivered early — you can still snag The Official Cyber Monday Mac Bundle Featuring Parallels Pro & Luminar 4 for an extra 40% off, with code MACAPP40.

It’s an incredible extension of our Green Monday sale that you should take advantage of as soon as you can. You’ll get not just one, or three, or four, but 12 incredible award-winning Mac apps for less than $45.

Apple Music teamed up with the iconic British artist David Hockney to create a portrait of Beethoven for the artist’s 250th birthday.

Hockney, whose painting “Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures)” is the most expensive work of art by a living artist to ever sell at auction, created the Beethoven image using his trusty iPad.

Riots broke out over the weekend at a Wistron factory in southern India that produces iPhones, resulting in around 100 people being arrested. Thousands of iPhones were stolen during the incident.

The riots were reportedly related to allegations about unpaid wages and other exploitation. Workers were allegedly not paid for several months, and made to do mandatory overtime. Protestors broke windows at the factory on the outskirts of Bangalore, pulled down CCTV cameras, and flipped cars onto their sides.

Apple CEO Tim Cook reportedly stepped in to squash an Apple TV+ series that would have chronicled the rise of controversial blogging network Gawker Media.

Earlier this year, Vanity Fair reported that Apple TV+ execs were working with former Gawker writers Max Read and Cord Jefferson, among others, on the series. Not much in the way of details were published. However, it sounds like it could have been a scripted show about the “glory days” of a blog known for “skewering the powerful.”

One of the potential problems? Apple and Cook could have been among the powerful in question.

Since leaving Apple in the middle of last year, Sir Jony Ive has launched a new design agency, LoveFrom, and taken on clients including Airbnb. Now he could be headed for the figurative driver’s seat at Ferrari — as the Italian luxury carmaker’s next CEO. Possibly.

According to a report from Reuters, Ive — by far the best-known designer in Apple history — is in the running to take over as Ferrari’s next CEO. Given Ive’s love of high-end cars, that has to be a job he would be tempted by!

Spare yourself the never-ending hunt of scouring the internet for the best gifts for your family and friends. We rounded them up into this nine-gift collection that covers a broad range of prices.

Whether you’re looking for a stocking stuffer for a neighbor, or a big gift to let someone know how much you miss them, we lined up some of our favorite present-worthy products in this gift guide. Plus, these are all sure to arrive before Christmas — so you can skip out on the anxiety of constantly checking tracking codes.

December 13, 1994: Apple strikes a deal with Bandai, Japan’s largest toymaker, to license Mac technology for the creation of a new videogame console called the Pippin.

The device, powered by a PowerPC 603 CPU and running a stripped-down, CD-ROM-based version of Mac OS, shows a struggling Apple is willing to take a chance on something new. Unfortunately, the Pipping becomes a total sales disaster.

Apple’s new over-the-ear headphones are kind of over the top. From the high-end design to the sky-high price tag, AirPods Max certainly made quite a splash this week.

They sold out almost immediately after Tuesday’s unveiling. And that weird AirPods Max case got mercilessly mocked online, as people compared it to a bra and a sleep mask, among other things.

It’s not all AirPods Max this week, though: Apple TV+ started streaming Wolfwalkers, which our reviewer called the “best animated film of the year.” Plus, Apple’s mysterious self-driving car project raced back into the rumor fast lane.

Read up in this week’s free edition of Cult of Mac Magazine. Download it now for your iOS device. Or use the links below to get to the stories on the web.

Whether you’re following along to a sweaty app-based workout, taking a long run, or just bumping jams to keep you motivated while working from home, everyone needs a great set of headphones.

For folks who like to move around without a wire getting in their way, these Powerbeats3 Wireless Earphones get the job done. They deliver premium audio quality — and you can get them at a steep discount right now.

If you’re an avid gamer (or are just trying to find the perfect gift for one), it can feel nearly impossible to sort through all the products and accessories that were released over the last few years. Not to mention, depending on what you choose, you could put a serious dent in your wallet. Thankfully, there’s the Ultimate Gaming Giveaway, a collection of the top-pick gaming devices, subscriptions and gear of the year — all potentially yours for anywhere between $10 and $50.

With Facebook facing a federal antitrust lawsuit, and a new administration headed for the White House, should Apple be worried about a  crackdown on big tech?

While the specifics might be far different for the two companies, D.C.’s apparent thirst for regulation should get Tim Cook sweating.

Disney has announced that its Disney+ streaming service will increase in price by a single, solitary dollar per month. That takes the monthly cost of the streaming service to $7.99 per month — or $79.99 per year if you buy an annual subscription.

Meanwhile, the price of the Disney Bundle, which also ties in Hulu and ESPN Plus, will add the same $1 to its price tag, bringing it to $13.99 per month. These price changes will kick into effect come March 26, 2021.

Wolfwalkers, the animated movie that arrives on Apple TV+ today, is the best animated film of 2020. A fiery mix of folklore and feminism, it’s one of the most astonishing works of visual art you’re likely to see this year.

It comes from the makers of gorgeous animated features The Secret of Kells and The Breadwinner — and it marks their strongest work to date.

Woot is offering cracking discounts on a whole bunch of new, open-box iPad and MacBook models today only. You can save up to 35% on 2019 and 2020 devices, including the newest iPad Pro and 16-inch MacBook Pro.

Stock is selling fast so enjoy this sale while you can!

Head off with a little girl as she wanders a Mediterranean island rescuing animals in Alba: A Wildlife Adventure. She’s supposed to be on vacation, but she’s ready to start an environmental movement instead!

The game, which hit Apple Arcade on Friday, is from Ustwo Games, the creator of the classic Monument Valley.

The holidays can be a notoriously tense time of the year — why not give yourself the gift of self-care? These four incredible massagers are all on sale at savings of up to 81% off. Get one (or more!) and you can alleviate all the tension headaches, sore backs and aching necks that tend to pop up around this time of year.

They also offer a perfect way to introduce a new wellness routine for yourself — or somebody on your gift list — in the new year.

It’s way too early to have a sense of how many units Apple will sell of its newly announced AirPods Max headphones. But according to a rumor from Digitimes, two of the manufacturers involved with production are “not expecting much” from the “niche” product.

The report cites sources from Compaq Manufacturing and Unitech, two companies reportedly making printed circuit boards for the new headphones. Unsurprisingly, both firms declined to give official responses with their verdicts.