Apple unveils new MacBook Pro, overhauls iPad, updates software

At a keynote event yesterday, Apple unveiled a raft of hardware and software updates which saw a large number of product changes that will be of interest to photographers. Chief among them were a new generation of MacBook Pro, pricing on the new Mac Pro, Mac OS Mavericks was released, and both iPhoto and Aperture received an update.

For photographers looking for a new pro-level machine, both the MacBook Pro and Mac Pro were discussed in the event. The Mac Pro, which was announced earlier this year, became more official. We now know that it will ship out in December, at a price of $2,999 for the quad-core version, and $3,999 for the six core variant. The Mac Pro will feature four USB 4 ports; six Thunderbolt 2 ports; and an HDMI port for maximum expandability. It can also support up to six displays at a time.

For the road warriors, the MacBook Pro has also been refreshed, with a price drop from last generation. Both the $1299 13-inch version and the $1999 15-inch version feature boosted battery life (nine- and eight-hours, respectively), retina displays, new processors and graphics cards. Also, neither of the two new units has an optical drive, and both use flash based on-board storage.

Apple also announced the new iPad Air, which packs a screen the same size as previous generations, but in a slightly smaller and lighter body. The iPad Mini received a major boon in the form of a Retina Display, and its resolution now matches the full-szied iPad.

Apple also released Mac OS 10.9 Mavericks, the newest OS update, for free for users. Amongst a host of other upgrades, Mavericks brings built-in file tagging, which should allow you to organize your files more efficiently; and better support for multiple displays.

Both iPhoto and Aperture have been updated to take advantage of iCloud photo sharing, Places, and iOS 7 camera filters. Aperture also now integrates with SmugMug, allowing you to share directly to you account. Both have a host of bug fixes.