The 10 Best Apps For Your New Mac

January 2, 2015 11:25 AM EST

Sales numbers aren’t in yet, but according to Flurry Analytics, 51% of new mobile devices activated on Christmas Day were Apple iPhones or iPads — three times more than the closest competitor, Samsung. Add that to the halo effect of iDevice owners also getting new Macs, and suddenly there’s a lot of empty Apple hard drives waiting to get filled with apps.

In the pre-iMac era, Apple computers suffered from a lack programs to choose from, but that’s not the case today. So, whether you just got your first Macbook or you’re upgrading to a Mac Pro, these ten apps will help you get the most out of your new Apple desktop or laptop.

Command-C: Yosemite, the newest Apple operating system, has some great features like Continuity, which lets Mac users share data with their iOS devices. But somehow the ability to copy text on an iPhone and paste it into the computer (or vice versa) has eluded Apple’s engineers.

Command-C fixes that problem with a seamless patch that throws text around between phones, tablets, and computers all linked on the same Wi-Fi network. If you’re planning on being productive with an array of Apple devices, this $3.99 solution (the Mac program is free, but the iOS app will cost you) is a time-saver well worth the asking price.

Disk Doctor: If you made the switch to Mac because “they just work,” well, I’ve got a secret for you: sometimes they don’t. (After all, why else would Apple Store’s Genius Bars be so busy?)

Disk Doctor, the number one-selling program in the Mac App Store, is proof positive of that, and an excellent utility for cleaning up your hard drive to make things run smoothly again. The $2.99 app scans the computer and can clear out files such as old mail downloads, browser data, and application caches, all with the flip of a switch.

Evernote: Versatile and easy to use, Evernote’s service bills itself as a replacement for your brain, a place where you can store web articles, photos, and notes so you don’t have to remember them. But the free Evernote app itself is so much more — organizing information as a collection of “notes” bound together as “notebooks,” it functions like a word processor, providing a great repository for all your thoughts. (For instance, I’ve been using Evernote as my primary writing app for years, and this article is even being composed with it.) Syncing across devices and providing the ability to share notes with other users, Evernote is something every computer user should have, regardless of their platform.

iA Writer Pro: For writers, whether they be students, professionals, or aspiring authors, nothing is as liberating (or intimidating) as the blank page. iA Writer Pro takes this principle and extends it to the screen, wiping away other apps and menu bars to free users of distractions. But the $19 app doesn’t stop there; it can also help you write more clearly with a syntax feature that highlights adjectives, nouns, verbs, adverbs and other terms. Cut the modifiers to tighten your prose and sharpen your verbs to make your sentences pop.

iWork: For a long time, the big knock on Apple computers was that they didn’t support Microsoft Office — and once they did get the software, the Macintosh versions lagged behind their PC brethren.

But if you’re still holding those opinions, you missed the news ten years ago when Apple released iWork, a suite with three apps (Pages, a word processor; Numbers, a spreadsheet application; and Keynote, a presentation program) that gets down to business, Steve Jobs-style. With crisp, clean interfaces, intuitive controls, and cloud-syncing capabilities, these apps make it easy and (almost) enjoyable to get work done. And even better, for people who bought Macs after September 24, 2014, they’re free.

Top 10 Tech Product Designs of 2014

**Nest** Acquired by Google in Jan. 2014, Nest Labs wants to turn your home into a smart device. The home automation system includes Internet-connected smoke detectors and thermostats, which have screens and chic, round designs — a huge design boost for devices that haven't really changed in recent decades. Aya Brackett—Nest

DJI Inspire 1 The latest DJI quadcopter retains the simple style that's made their drones so popular, but adds 4K video capability — and the ability to transmit the HD video wirelessly to an on-the-ground devices. A new ground-facing camera also allows Inspire 1 to fly steadily to keep the video footage clean. — **DJI Inspire 1** The latest DJI quadcopter retains the simple style that's made their drones so popular, but adds 4K video capability — and the ability to transmit the HD video wirelessly to an on-the-ground devices. A new ground-facing camera also allows Inspire 1 to fly steadily to keep the video footage clean.DJI

**iPhone 6 and 6 Plus** Bigger is better, or so the critics cried, calling for Apple to make a supersized phone. That was before Apple quieted them with the release of the iPhone 6 Plus in September, the company’s largest iPhone ever. With an alluring 5.5-inch display that makes it feel something like a portable iPad, the phone is is a challenge to Samsung’s larger models. Along with a powerful 8-megapixel camera and longer battery life, the phone is more a statement than an answer.Apple

**Osmo Tangram** Tired of seeing your kids staring at screens like zombies? This iPad game brings virtual play to life. A reflector equipped with artificial intelligence snaps over your iPad's camera and can sense when objects are moving (or being drawn) on a pad in front of it. Osmo comes with three games, all of which promote creativity and—because it’s best played in groups—social intelligence. The best way to understand how Osmo works is by watching the video of kids who have never played with the device before testing it out for the first time.Osmo

**Tesla 2014 Model S** Tesla 2014 Model S has been praised both for its luxury feel and high-tech interior. The electric car offers instantaneous acceleration from a stop, a function very few other cars on the market provide. Tesla

Jawbone's Up3 wristband — **Jawbone's UP3 Wristband** Depending on your view, Jawbone is on the road to making us all super fit athletes or brutally efficient cyborgs who operate by data alone. How many minutes of REM sleep did I get last night? What’s the difference between my heart rate while resting and during a workout? How hydrated am I? How many calories did I burn on my last run? Jawbone UP3 answers all those questions better than any other Jawbone did before. The $179 wearable fits on your wrist and comes in black and silver.Jawbone

**Square Stand** The iPad holder and credit card reader launched last year with the goal of transforming an iPad into a point-of-sale. The sleek, white stand also offers an enhanced credit card reader, and can be adapted to include a cash register.Square

**Nerf Rebelle Rapid Red Blaster** Last year, Nerf decided to even the battlefield and create a new line of guns, arrows and crossbows specifically for girls. The resulting Nerf Rebelle line takes a cue from the success of *The Hunger Games*: The box is covered with tweens styled like that series' hero, Katniss Everdeen.Hasbro

Oculus Rift Crescent Bay The latest Oculus Rift prototype, Crescent Bay, marks one step further before the commercial release of the virtual reality handset. Crescent Bay features upgrades like 360-degree head tracking, a lighter weight, and high-quality audio. Lucky participants in the demos recalled the mind-boggling immersion in the scenes they were watching. The consumer version, Oculus Rift, is expected to launch as early as April 2015. — **Oculus Rift Crescent Bay** The latest Oculus Rift prototype, Crescent Bay, marks one step further before the commercial release of the virtual reality handset. Crescent Bay features upgrades like 360-degree head tracking, a lighter weight, and high-quality audio. Lucky participants in the demos recalled the mind-boggling immersion in the scenes they were watching. The consumer version, Oculus Rift, is expected to launch as early as April 2015.Oculus VR

**Qualcomm WiPower** Sick of tangled phone charging cables? Qualcomm WiPower allows you to power up your phone without plugging it in — a function that, to most people, is basically magic. The wireless charging pad eliminates the fuss of power chords, while also allowing you to turn everyday furniture like tables and chairs into charging surfaces.Qualcomm

Microsoft Office: Alright, that lovely writeup on iWork aside, Microsoft Office is still how (most of) the world gets down to business. But as hard as Microsoft has tried to catch up with iPads in the tablet space, the company’s new direction has them launching full-featured versions of its most popular productivity software.

Available for full purchase (starting at $139) or through a subscription model as Office 365 (as low as $6.99 per month), the software suite includes longtime PC favorites Word, Excel, and Powerpoint, as well as OneNote, the company’s note-taking app. And as a bonus, opting for Office 365 means the software is always up-to-date and can be used on iPhones and iPads as well.

Notability: Named the 2014 Mac App of the Year by Apple, this note-taking program is great for capturing thoughts no matter how you have them, whether its handwritten, typed, audio, photos or sketches. In addition, the $9.99 app can be used to annotate PDFs and other documents. And while the app lets users back up notes to Dropbox and Google Drive, iCloud integration ports entries to iPads and iPhones running their own touch-based versions of the Notability app.

Pixelmator: Adobe Photoshop rose to popularity on the backs of Apple users, but times have changed, and the lower-priced but high-powered Pixelmator is a clear Mac favorite now. This $29 graphics program renders images quickly, letting users paint original works, retouch photos, draw, and apply more than 160 different effects. Weaving in Handoff, Apple’s newest cross-platform technology, the program also lets users start a file on a Mac and switch to an iPad without missing a beat (or a brush stroke).

Quicken 2015: Good artists borrow; great artists bank — at least the creatives who use Macs to run this powerful personal finance program. A long-popular program on PCs, this newly refreshed piece of software can help automatically categorize transactions for all of your accounts, helping you stay on budget and keep current with your bills. And though it’s new (and on a Mac), the $75 app will still play nicely with all your old Quicken data, importing from older versions such as Quicken Essentials, Quicken 2007, and Quicken Windows 2010.

Topaz Impression: Remember that gorgeous sunset photo you snapped while on vacation on St. Lucia? Well, tucked away in your computer, it’s only dressing up the far reaches of your hard drive. This $99 app, while expensive, is ready to turn your Instagrams into instant art, converting your digital photos into brush-stroked masterpieces in the style of the master impressionists. Painting more than 10,000 brush strokes in under a second, Impression has a wide range of features from stroke size to volume and strength, making this much more versatile than the filters that your camera app applies. And with more than 100 effects, 72 textures and 17 different brushes, no two works of app-induced art will ever be the same.

Top 10 Tech Product Designs of 2014

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