Everything you need to know about today’s Apple announcement
Following their release of the iPhone 5S and 5C, one might expect Apple to sit back and enjoy their massive success for a while. Yet here we are, barely more than a month later, with Apple preparing for the release of more new products. The tech giant held its third event of the year today in San Francisco to announce what’s next for the company. Read below to find out more—and don’t forget to let us know in the comments which of these you’re most excited about!
iPad Air
Introduced as the world’s thinnest, lightest tablet, the iPad Air is 20% thinner than the previous full-sized iPad. It may only weigh one pound, but don’t let this fool you. The iPad Air carries the same 64-bit A7 processor as the iPhone 5S, making it twice as fast as previous iPads. It shares the same aesthetic as last year’s iPad Mini (think rounded on the edges with an aluminum rear plate) and comes with a 2048 x 1536 resolution Retina display. Prices start at $499, with 16 GB, 32 GB, 64 GB and 128 GB models available.
The iPad Air will go on sale November 1.
iPad Mini
The iPad Mini got a facelift this time around with a much-desired Retina display. This means you can now get a smaller version of the iPad with every bit as good a screen as the full-sized one. Like the iPad Air, the Mini also features an A7 processor. It starts at just $399.
While Apple did not give an official release date, they did say the Mini will be available late November.
Mac Pro
The Mac Pro is probably the most unique-looking desktop in existence. If you haven’t seen it yet, it’s essentially a hollow cylinder. Yeah. Looks aside, however, this thing is still very impressive. It has a thermal-core center to keep it cool, a motion-sensor feature that lights up all ports when moved and consumes 70% less energy than previous Mac Pros. If you consider yourself a computer person, Wired has a rundown of all sorts of technical features that will have rest of us politely nodding our heads while you gush about them. The Mac Pro is $3000 at its cheapest (we use that term lightly here . . . very lightly).
You can purchase the new desktop sometime in December.
MacBook Pro
Both the 15- and 13-inch MacBook Pros saw an upgrade, with an improved battery life of 8 and 9 hours, respectively. The graphics capabilities were also enhanced, as they both get twice the 3D performance at a 45% faster rate. In addition, each received a $200 price cut from the previous models. You can get the 13-inch Pro for $1299 and the 15-inch for $1999.
Both models are available today.
OS X Mavericks
Apple’s latest operating system for Mac products—referred to as OS X Mavericks—includes over 200 changes. While it’s not as drastic as their iOS 7 update for mobile devices, the new features are designed to significantly improve performance. It includes a Power Saver mode that allows users up to one hour longer web browsing, a feature called Compressed Memory that can compress inactive parts of your computer’s memory and much more. Perhaps the biggest change is that OS X Mavericks will be available today entirely for free. Apple’s Craig Federighi used this fact to take a jab at Microsoft, whose Windows 8 Pro update costs $199 to purchase. If you’re a Mac user, this is definitely a big deal.
If you want to know more details, be sure to check it out here.
iLife and iWork
Lastly, both iLife and iWork received a few updates today. While there were no major differences to the iWork suite that hadn’t already been announced, iLife has joined iWork as being entirely free with any iOS device. The iLife suite includes Garageband, iMovie and iPhoto.
If you’re interested in hearing more about any of these products, you can watch the entire keynote on Apple’s website.
