You can see the side-by-side comparison here (image via TechCrunch):

The new model is so much smaller, in fact, that it fits into just an eighth of the volume of the previous model.

The new Mac pro includes Thunderbolt support. It includes an Intel Xeon CPU, 1866GHz RAM, and 2.5 times faster SSD storage. It also supports AMD FirePro GPUs.

“With the latest Xeon processors, dual FirePro GPUs, ECC memory, PCIe-based flash and Thunderbolt 2, all built around a revolutionary thermal core, the next generation Mac Pro is the most radical Mac yet,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “All this performance and expandability is packed into a dramatic new design that’s one-eighth the volume, and best of all, it will be assembled here in the USA.”

Consumers can look for the device later this year. No specific date was given, nor was the price.

This is, as the company noted, because there’s simply a “dwindling supply of cats”. They’re running out of cat names. They unveiled the name as Mac OS X Sea Lion:

Then, they noted that this was a joke. The real name is OS X Mavericks. This is the first in the company’s new series of names, which will be based on California-related themes.

The OS has over 200 new features. Three big features the company touted were: finder tabs, tagging and multiple displays, which were demoed.

Finder tabs essentially give your Finder window more of a modern browser feel. You can add tabs by clicking the plus, and take the whole thing full screen, which will be more appealing with the inclusion of tabs.

As far as tagging, you can now tag files on OS X based on details such as your location. This makes them better for search, and they will appear in the Finder sidebar.

The crowd was really excited about the Multiple Displays feature, which lets users view menus across various screens, and view various apps in full screen on each screen. AirPlay-connected TVs will work as full displays.

Apple also touted the battery life that accompanies the new OS thanks to compressed memory and other features.

With this version, Apple has also added iBooks, Maps (which lets you send directions to your iPhone), an updated Calendar, and launched a new version of Safari. It also integrates iOS notifications.

From the press release:

Maps brings advanced mapping technologies from iOS to the Mac, including crisp vector graphics, stunning 3D view and interactive Flyover™. With Maps you can plan a trip from your Mac, then send it to your iPhone® for voice navigation on the road. Maps integration throughout Mavericks gives users helpful maps from within Mail, Contacts and Calendar, and developers can integrate the same powerful mapping features into their apps through the Map Kit API. With iBooks you have instant access to your existing iBooks library, as well as the more than 1.8 million titles in the iBooks Store, from textbooks and classics to the latest best sellers. iBooks also works seamlessly across your devices, so you can read a book on your Mac, make notes or highlights, and then pick up exactly where you left off on your iPad®.

…

New core technologies in OS X Mavericks improve the energy efficiency and responsiveness of your Mac. Timer Coalescing intelligently groups together low-level operations so that the CPU can spend more time in a low-power state, saving energy without affecting performance or responsiveness. App Nap reduces the power consumed by apps that you’re not using. Compressed Memory technology keeps your Mac fast and responsive. When your system’s memory begins to fill up, Compressed Memory automatically compresses inactive data. When these items are needed again, Mavericks instantly uncompresses them.

The new version of Safari that accompanies the OS is energy and memory efficient, and has improved JavaScript performance.

“Safari’s new process-per-tab architecture makes the browser more responsive, stable and secure,” the company says. “Safari also introduces innovations like Shared Links, which make it easy to discover, read and share interesting new content from Twitter and LinkedIn, all in one place.”

Also included in OS X Mavericks is iCloud Keychain, a way to safely store site login info, credit card numbers, and WI-Fi passwords. It pushes them to all your devices so you don’t have to remember them.

It has interactive notifications that let you reply to messages, respond to FaceTime calls or delete emails from the apps you’re using.

There’s a developer preview of Mavericks available today. For everyone else, the final release will come this fall.

The Mac install base is up to 72 million, CEO Tim Cook proudly proclaimed. The iMac and Macbook are the number on desktop and notebook in the US, respectively.

First off, Twitter for Mac now has Retina display support.

“Now Twitter is even more vibrant and detailed on the highest resolution Mac notebooks. With this update, Tweets will be clearer and sharper, creating a more vivid experience,” says Twitter.

There’s also a new share photo button in the compose box of tweets. Plus, Twitter for Mac is now available in 14 new languages: Dutch, French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Malay, Portuguese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Traditional Chinese, Turkish.

Twitter for Mac Tech Lead Ben Sandofsky wrote today’s Twitter blog post on the update, and in it he says that we should “keep an eye out for more improvements to come.” Apparently, he’s serious about devoting more time to Twitter for Mac:

P.S. I’m taking a break from iOS to work on Twitter for Mac full time.

— Ben Sandofsky (@sandofsky) April 25, 2013

You can grab the update in the Mac App Store today.

One of those other devices cashing in on the wearable computing scene is the MYO. It’s an armband that uses the electronic impulses of your muscles to control electronics remotely. In short, it translates body movements into commands.

It’s probably better if you see it for yourself. Here’s a demo of the product in action:

Now, can MYO do all of the things in that video? It’s certainly possible, although I highly doubt that Mass Effect 3 will get MYO support any time soon. The other uses, however, are entirely within the realm of possibility right now. It all comes down to how well the technology can interpret muscle movements as separate actions.

On an aside, the final demo shows a skier using something similar to Google Glass in conjunction with MYO. If they could work together, I can see many people doing some extraordinary things with Google Glass and MYO combined – extreme sports recording being just one of many.

MYO will initially support Windows PCs and Macs, but the developers are working on Android and iOS APIs right now. After that, it may be used to control any piece of equipment that accepts Bluetooth input.

The MYO will only cost $149 when it launches late this year. It’s a far cry from the $1,499 price tag on Google Glass. Nevertheless, it will be interesting to see what developers can do when the human body becomes the method of input.

The 13-inch version is now $1,499 for 122GB of flash, and $1,699 for a new 2.6 GHz processor and 256GB of flash. The 15-inchy version now comes with a 2.4 GHz quad-core processor, and the 15-inch notebook comes with a new 2.7 GHz quad-core processor and 16GB of memory. The price of the 13-inch MacBook Air with 256GB of flash has been reduced to $1,399.

“The MacBook Pro with Retina display features the world’s highest resolution notebook display,” the company said in an announcement. “Whether you’re reading emails, writing text, editing home movies in HD or retouching professional photography, everything appears vibrant, detailed and sharp, delivering an unrivaled viewing experience. The MacBook Pro with Retina display features flash storage that is up to four times faster than traditional notebook hard drives, and delivers improved reliability, instant-on responsiveness and up to 30 days of standby time.”

All of the new pricing and updates go into effect immediately, and the products are available through Apple’s online store. They’re also available through authorized resellers.

Apple shares were down 0.54% in pre-market trading this morning.

It’s been only one month since EA released the “Alpha” version of its Origin platform for the Mac, and today EA officially released the client for Macs. We’ll have to assume that means the weeks-long alpha and beta tests went well, or that no one downloaded the alpha and the publisher decided it was good enough for the few people who would actually use it. Either way, Mac gamers can now download EA games such as The Sims 3, Dragon Age II, and, um, The Sims 3 expansion packs. There are other games available, of course, but nothing that isn’t already available through the Mac App Store.

“Our vision with Origin is to connect your gaming universe online, and today we’re taking a major step in expanding our service to reach Mac-based gamers worldwide,” said Michael Blank, VP of production for Origin at EA. “In delivering great game content, connecting the Origin service across PC, Mac and iOS devices, and offering great value to gamers with dual-platform play on select EA titles, Origin is making it easier than ever before for gamers to connect and play anytime, anywhere.”

So, maybe Mac gamers won’t get to download Crysis 3, but they shouldn’t worry too much. SimCity will (probably) be released on Origin for Mac in the near future.

The basic Humble Indie Bundle comes with Snapshot, The Binding of Isaac, Closure, Shank 2, and Indie Game: The Movie. The latter is the first time that a movie has been offered as part of the Humble Bundle, but it has offered books and music in the past as well. As for those who pay over the average, you will get Legend of Grimrock and Dungeon Defenders alongside all of its DLC.

As is customary, all buyers will also receive the soundtracks for each of the games included in the bundle. The score to The Binding of Isaac is especially excellent and well worth the purchase.

As of now, the bundle has made over $1.3 million. The highest contributor has only put forward $1.256 so this is your chance to come in and be the number one contributor until Notch inevitably shows up with a $5,000 donation. You have 12 more days to make those donations count.

The machine is available through the Apple Online Store, Apple retail stores, and through select Apple Authorized Resellers. The 27-inch version will be available for order through the Apple Online Store, and will begin shipping in December.

Apple Insider points to an uboxing video from BrandHitTech:

“Redesigned from the inside out, the new iMac packs high performance technology into an aluminum and glass enclosure that measures just 5 mm thin at its edge and features a reengineered display that reduces reflection by 75 percent,” Apple says in the announcement. “The new iMac includes 8GB of 1600 MHz memory, a 1TB hard drive, third generation quad-core Intel Core i5 processors that can be upgraded to Core i7, and the latest NVIDIA GeForce graphics processors that deliver up to 60 percent faster performance. Fusion Drive is an innovative new storage option that gives customers the performance of flash and the capacity of a hard drive by combining 128GB of flash with a standard hard drive to create a single storage volume that intelligently manages files to optimize read and write performance.”

The machine is available with a 2.7 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.2 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M for $1,299, and with a 2.9 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.6 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M for $1,499.

The 21.5-inch version will be available through the Apple Online Store, Apple retail stores, and through select Apple Authorized Resellers. The 27-inch version will be available for order through the Apple Online Store, and will begin shipping in December.

Apple considers the new iMac to be the most advanced desktop it has ever made. The company says in its announcement:

Redesigned from the inside out, the new iMac packs high performance technology into an aluminum and glass enclosure that measures just 5 mm thin at its edge and features a reengineered display that reduces reflection by 75 percent. The new iMac includes 8GB of 1600 MHz memory, a 1TB hard drive, third generation quad-core Intel Core i5 processors that can be upgraded to Core i7, and the latest NVIDIA GeForce graphics processors that deliver up to 60 percent faster performance. Fusion Drive is an innovative new storage option that gives customers the performance of flash and the capacity of a hard drive by combining 128GB of flash with a standard hard drive to create a single storage volume that intelligently manages files to optimize read and write performance.

The 21.5-inch is available with a 2.7 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.2 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M for $1,299, and with a 2.9 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.6 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M for $1,499.

Its 27-inch counterpart comes with a 2.9 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.6 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660M for $1,799, and with a 3.2 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.6 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675MX for $1,999.

Apple blog 9to5Mac is reporting, citing reliable sources, that early builds of OS X 10.9, expected to launch next year, include Siri and Maps integration. The Siri integration, according to the report, would be similar to that of iOS 6 on the latest iPad models.

As the publication notes, the early build including the features is no guarantee that they’ll be present when the OS is launched. It’s possible that they will not make it past testing phases, but it’s noteworthy enough that they’re in consideration for the Mac operating system. The presence of these features could go a long way in securing user adoption, as there are no doubt plenty of Mac users who are not using iPhones or iPads.

Competition isn’t exactly decreasing for either Siri or Maps, so utilizing its hugely popular Mac lines should be a major step for Apple in this regard.

Apple will obviously continue to improve upon both features in the meantime. The maps product has been highly controversial among iOS users, and word is that Google is getting closer to having its Maps app on the operating system. A forthcoming update to iOS is expected to have Siri improvements, including the ability to purchase movie tickets.