OS X 10.9 Mavericks update is available today for free from Mac App Store

After unveiling a range of improved MacBook Pro laptops and a host of new iPads, Apple revealed the release date for its latest major OS X update, Mavericks: today.

Mavericks is now available to download from the Mac App Store and the best bit is still to come. The update costs absolutely nothing. Nada. Zip. Zilch. It’s a free download and you won’t need to update to the previous version, 10.8 Lion, before doing so. This Gadget Helpline blogger is currently in the process of downloading the update to jump from OS X 10.7.5!

At some 5.29GB the update is rather a big one, so don’t expect it to be a quick process. Installation is likely to take a little while as well (I’m yet to get there). Nevertheless, Mavericks adds a ton of new stuff and on the whole integrates iOS into OS X even further than before.

New features include the iBooks Store for Mac, iCloud webpage syncing across Mac and iOS devices, iCloud Keychain to store your passwords across all your Mac and iOS products, support for multiple Full HD displays and new look notifications which work in much the same way as iOS.

In order to get updated to Mavericks you will need to be running OS X 10.6.8 or later, so that’s the Snow Leopard update which can be picked up for £14 from Apple. Once that’s installed you’re good to get going with Mavericks!