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Wireless headphones make a great gift—these just dropped for Black Friday

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Best headphones deals for the holidays

Whether you’re reliant on music to get you through a workout or require a great set of headphones to help you concentrate at work, it’s pretty much always a good time to upgrade your audio equipment. From earbuds to over-ear headphones and from sweatproof to cushiony, we’ve rounded up the most noteworthy headphones for the holidays. These make the perfect gift for yourself or friends and family — and with coupon code BFSAVE20, you can get early Black Friday access and save an additional 20% off the sale price.

Get early access to Black Friday pricing on this 5-in-1 grammar checker

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WhiteSmoke Grammar Checker: This tool will make your writing far more powerful.
This tool will make your writing far more powerful.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Now that so much of our daily work and communication has shifted online, it’s more important than ever that our grammar is impeccable and our sentence structure is solid. Whether you’re drafting an email, wrapping up a report under a tight deadline, or even typing up your digital holiday card, you want to be sure you’re saying exactly what you mean.

Since it takes a lot of effort to make sure you’ve crossed your T’s and dotted your I’s, there’s WhiteSmoke Grammar Checker — an English-correction tool that takes the guesswork out of what you’re drafting and brings out your inner wordsmith.

iPhone 12 Pro components cost surprisingly little

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iPhone 12 Pro parts cost shockingly little
The sum of iPhone 12 Pro parts cost is less than half the price of the product.
Photo: Cult of Mac

The iPhone 12 Pro starts at $999, but the components for this high-end smartphone cost less than half the selling price. Market researchers disassembled Apple’s latest top-tier handset to ascertain its parts cost.

And they figured out that only a tiny percentage of the device is actually made is China.

For Black Friday, get huge discounts on these career-enhancing courses

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Premium Learn to Code 2021
With these four educational bundles, you can add Apple's SwiftUI, Adobe Creative Cloud, Microsoft Excel and more to your skillset.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Black Friday is going largely virtual this year, with people snatching up deals from their couches instead of descending on their local department stores.

You might miss out on the in-store excitement (and the ridiculous Black Friday brawls), but it’s not all bad. One huge benefit of shopping from home is that you can get deals on stuff that doesn’t come in a box.

Take, for instance, these absolutely awesome lesson bundles, which are available for as much as 98% off the usual prices. With these career-boosting courses, you can learn to code, master in-demand software and generally get set for a breakout 2021.

Apple Watch, MacBook tipped for big redesigns in late 2021

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Monowear-Urban-Canvas-Apple-Watch-3
New iPads with mini-LED displays could come even sooner.
Photo: Adel Neal/Cult of Mac

Apple will introduce a redesigned Apple Watch and MacBook lineup in late 2021, according to one reliable analyst.

Ming-Chi Kuo of TF International Securities expects Apple’s next-generation wearable to bring “innovative health management functions.” He also told investors iPhone 12 is off to a strong start.

Get early Black Friday access to these top Lightning cables

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10-Ft Cloth MFi-Certified Lightning Cable is super-strong.
We've got all kinds of cables on sale right now.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

We can all agree that there’s nothing worse than a charging cable unexpectedly quitting on you. (Well, maybe not). Thankfully, there are lots of reliable options out in the market today — and we bet this roundup of cables for Lightning devices has options more innovative, durable and convenient than the ones lying around your house.

Check out some of our favorites and take advantage of early Black Friday access (no coupon code required) for savings that make these the perfect stocking stuffers.

This handy guide lists all the M1-compatible Mac apps [Updated]

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A new site lists Apple Silicon apps
A new site shows all the apps that ready for the new Macs running the Apple M1 processor.
Photo: IsAppleSiliconReady

A new website could become the go-to guide to which applications are compatible with Macs running on Apple Silicon chips.

IsAppleSiliconReady.com lists apps that have been ported to run on Apple’s new M1 processor. It also tells if apps are compatible with Rosetta 2, the macOS Big Sur feature that allows the M1 Macs to run software compiled for Intel chips.

Get more from your iPhone with 4 great accessories

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HD Monocular Telescope
Take your pick of four great iPhone accessories, including this lightweight monocular telescope that offers 50x60 magnification.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

iPhones can do a lot, but there’s only so much you can squeeze into such a slim profile. These four great iPhone accessories will make it possible to get a lot more out of your smartphone. And they all cost less than 50 bucks.

M1 MacBook Air is an instant classic [Review]

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MacBook Air M1 2020
Apple's new M1 chip makes this ultraportable laptop ultra-fantastic.
Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac

I just opened more than 650 tabs in Safari on a new M1 MacBook Air. I would have opened more, but I got bored.

Meanwhile, in the background, the machine is downloading Photoshop and the Microsoft 360 suite, and I can see in Activity Monitor that it’s processing thousands of iCloud photos while also indexing the hard drive.

Despite this, the machine is as fleet as a greyhound. I started working on a Photoshop project while checking email, keeping an eye on TweetDeck and, of course, clicking around all those open Safari tabs. The MacBook Air is just humming. I’ve never seen anything like it.

iPad Pro could make switch to OLED screens in second half of 2021

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iPad Pro with Smart Keyboard
Mini-LED displays could be a temporary stepping stone.
Photo: Apple

Apple will debut its first iPad Pro with an OLED display during the second half of 2021, according to a new report.

The screens are expected to be manufactured by Samsung, which is said to be renovating one of its production lines specifically for OLED iPad displays. LG will also be involved in production.

Apple delays making trainers and teachers pay 30% of in-app class fees

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Apple made it through its financial Apple Q3 2020 with flying colors.
Apple is giving a break to trainers and teachers during the pandemic.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Companies using their iPhone app to schedule online group events so they can stay in business during the COVID-19 pandemic won‘t be required to share their revenue with Apple for many months.

It’s one of several moves Apple made recently that could soften its image a bit.

Apple’s security chief accused of offering bribe for concealed weapons licenses

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Apple bribe included iPads for concealed weapon carry licenses.
The Santa Clara Sheriff’s Office was accused of wanting iPads as a kickback to grant Apple’s security chief concealed weapons licenses.
Photo: Cult of Mac

The Santa Clara County District Attorney accused Thomas Moyer, the head of global security for Apple, of bribery. Two officials at the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office were also indicted and accused of soliciting the bribe.

The county employees supposedly wanted 200 iPads donated to the Sheriff’s Office in exchange for four licenses to carry concealed firearms.

Get early access to Black Friday pricing on over 3 million design assets

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3 Million + Design Assets Super Bundle: Get lifetime access to crucial design assets at one unbeatable price.
Get lifetime access to crucial design assets at one unbeatable price.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Whether you’re putting together a pitch deck or helping a client develop their company logo, having an available repository of stock photos, vectors and icons is an invaluable time-saver — especially when the images have extended and commercial licenses available. This 3 Million+ Design Assets Super Bundle: Lifetime Subscription is perfect for entrepreneurs, small marketing teams and professional designers alike.

Wi-Fi connectivity problems plague some HomePod mini owners

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HomePod mini lives up to its name
HomePod mini offers a smaller and cheaper Apple smart speaker experience.
Photo: Apple

Some HomePod mini owners are encountering Wi-Fi connectivity problems that there appears to be no fix for.

Early adopters of Apple’s newest smart speaker report that Siri often says there is no internet connection, despite no issues on other devices. The only workaround is a temporary one.

Apple offers gift cards of up to $150 in new Black Friday promotion

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Apple Black Friday 2020 promo
Start shopping Friday to bag yours.
Photo: Apple

Apple today unveiled its four-day shopping event that kicks off on Black Friday. The company is offering gift cards of up to $150 when you buy select products, including iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad and Mac.

The event runs through Monday, November 30, but it excludes some of Apple’s newest products — such as iPhone 12 and the new iPad Air.

Take your pick of 4 great apps under $40

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WALTR 2
Ready to kick things up a notch?
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

Want to make your digital life easier to manage or, dare we say it, just plain more fun?

We rounded up four great apps that can boost your productivity, maximize your entertainment options and just generally make your life better. They’re all offered at hefty discounts, and they all cost less than $40. (Some come with lifetime subscriptions, too.)