OS X Mavericks is available for all Apple users. Surprising everyone, Apple issued this upgrade as a free download and the reviews are in! Critics like the new OS and are fond of some of the new features like the tag system to organize content. Interested in downloading it? These are the top five reviews you need to read.
1. Darrell Etherington – Techcrunch
The updated Finder in Mavericks offers a lot of advantages over the old version, including tabbed browsing and new tags for better organization of files and media. neither feature is an absolute necessity for a desktop operating system, and in fact they’ll likely appeal more to power users than to anyone else. But they represent exactly the kinds of refinements that Apple is embracing with its update strategy in Mavericks: namely, fixing small things that have been missed considerably by the small group of people who want them.
Tags offer a way to group files beyond where they reside on your computer, and really offer a big improvement over and above what’s possible with folder structures, the traditional organization method for desktop operating systems. By default, OS X Mavericks provides a number of different coloured tags for you to use, but if you want to customize you can also create your own. That means you can make ones for any group of content you want to be able to quickly call up regardless of where they’re resident on your drive.
Etherington was very fond of tags and thinks Apple did an excellent job refining the Finder on the system. He felt that there is potential for the next version of the OS to expand on the tag function but this is a strong start.
2. Josh Ong – The Next Web
After Apple’s debacle with the switch to its own Maps app last year, the addition of a dedicated Maps app for OS X will undoubtedly be met with suspicion. The new Mac app certainly looks and feels good, but it still suffers from having worse data than Google Maps.
You can activate Apple’s Flyover 3D mode and overlay traffic information. Venues include cards with Yelp reviews and photos.
The best thing about Maps on OS X is the ability to send directions and locations straight to an iOS device with the share button. Once shared, the Maps app on iOS will receive a push notification.
The Apple maps debacle was an unfortunate mar on the company’s record. Ong praised the refurbished map app and the sharing capabilities is another highlight for iOS devices.
3. Adam Dachis – Lifehacker
With each update to OS X—perhaps because they continue to do less—Apple has managed to avoid major compatibility issues with existing apps. For the most part, in our tests, apps that worked under Mountain Lion work well in Mavericks. While you might run into quirks with a few (e.g. Photoshop CS6 doesn’t work with tags in some instances, some text expanders have trouble getting permission, some apps are a little unstable on some machines but not others), you should have no trouble work under the new OS without trouble.
Lifehacker’s Adam Dachis went a different route and pointed all the flaws within Mavericks. A few apps struggled with compatibility in the transition between Mountain Lion and Mavericks. The Adobe creative suite was a particular target for this criticism.
4. John Siracusa – Ars Technica
Enabling iCloud Keychain requires traversing a gauntlet of security-related questions rivaled in OS X only by the recently revised FileVault disk encryption feature. It starts with a suggestion to enable a screen lock, if one is not already enabled, to prevent someone from walking up to your unattended Mac and having access to all your cloud-synced passwords.
Heed Apple’s advice (or click “Not Now”), then enter your Apple ID password to continue. Next, you’ll be asked to create an “iCloud Security Code.” The default dialog requests a four-digit numeric code, but the “Advanced…” button leads to more options.
Siracusa felt that the iCloud keychain feature was important to activate but that it was a difficult process.
5. Stuart Miles – Pocket Lint
But under the surface OS X performs like an animal; it’s had a huge overhaul, even if visually it looks like an incremental update. The main benefits are in the engine room, so to speak, where Apple has made the operating system work harder, and yet open up an increase in battery life all at the same time. There’s so much to cover, if you want a point by point of everything then cast your eyes over our Mavericks breakdown feature, below.
But the biggest push is in battery life. That is the single most important thing in the update and one that it is worth upgrading for regardless of all the other Mavericks features outlined.
We’ve been testing it on a 2013 MacBook Air in beta and have been amazed by the push in battery life. The Haswell-powered Air has always been good at battery, but since we’ve started using Mavericks we’ve stopped carrying our charger. Battery life now feels like days rather than minutes, and you’ll easily get 5-hours of solid use from the machine.
Apple improved the feature that gave people the most worry. OS X Mavericks battery update has made Macbooks an incredibly powerful tool since charging happens less.
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Apple’s OS X Mavericks: Top Five Reviews You Need to Read