It is an exciting time of year. The seasons are changing, Halloween is upon us and Apple just released a slew of new products at an event last week. Whether you are scoping out gift ideas for the quickly approaching holidays or just looking to treat yourself, there is a bunch of shiny new toys to consider.
If you don’t have much cash to spare, there is the new OS X Mavericks operating system. The update is free and you get longer battery life, improved notifications, a new Finder and an updated interface. Assuming your computer is compatible, the update is available via the Mac App Store.
New iPads were also revealed. The iPad mini now has a Retina display and an upgraded A7 processor, and the all-new iPad Air touts a thinner, lighter body and an upgraded A7 processor. Each iPad starts at $399 and $499 respectively, with older models available for as little as $299.
The Macbook Pro line also received a sorely needed update, featuring a thinner, lighter body, up to nine hours of battery life and significantly improved graphics and processing power. Even more, the entry-level model is cheaper than ever, with prices starting at just $1299.
Apple also announced the exorbitantly priced Mac Pro, a coffee maker-shaped computer that starts at $2,999 and becomes available in December. That price buys you some power, though. The Mac Pro is customizable with up to 64 GB of RAM (chances are your laptop has no more than 8 GB), and an Intel Xeon E5 processor that is unlikely to stall no matter what you throw at it. Yeah, it may be expensive, but this beast of a machine is well-suited for some serious video or photo editing.
Several enticing freebies are now included with the purchase of a new Mac or iOS device, including free versions of Apple’s iWork and iLife software suites. These include Pages, Keynote, Numbers, iPhoto, iMovie and GarageBand. Previously purchased separately, this software package eliminates the need for Microsoft Office and other non-Apple products.
In other words, Apple’s new products are sleeker and faster than ever before, and they come with cool free stuff. You don’t have to be a genius to realize it is a good time to buy some Apple gear.
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