Apple Mac OS X 10.7 Pro Reviews

The biggest question I have about OS X's future is whether the Mac App Store model will ever become the only way to install programs to your Mac, as it currently is on iOS. Such a system is not without its merits (users get a streamlined way to buy programs and a system protected from malware; Apple gets a healthy share of the profits), but for many, this would represent a fundamental (and, perhaps, intolerable) change to the operating system. It's very hard to say whether this will happen - on the one hand, Apple seems to appreciate that different devices have different functions and needs, and that people expect to be able to install what they want, how they want on their computers. On the other hand, the App Store model has been very successful and lucrative for them, and the company has a history of throwing power users under the bus to appease the masses. In either case, what we have here today is mostly a net gain, regardless of how you use your computer: existing functionality has been preserved (unless you use Rosetta), some useful new features have been added, and Lion runs as quickly on the same hardware as does Snow Leopard (unless you've got a Core Solo or Duo Mac, in which case it won't run at all). It's another incremental OS X upgrade, and like most OS X upgrades, it's fairly easy to recommend as long as your Mac and your programs support it.

Lion is a significant step forward for Mac OS X, but it's not without its problems. Features such as Mission Control, Resume, Auto Save and Versions will prove incredibly useful over time. Launchpad may prove its worth, but even if it remains unused, it's not in the way. Many Mac owners will miss Rosetta, but its demise was inevitable. Not so Front Row, which didn't need to be dropped at all. Maybe Apple will put it in the App Store as a free download.

Yes, we'd like to see a lot more full-screen apps (which will come with time) and deeper social-networking integration in everything from contacts and calendar to the browser. It also remains to be seen how well Lion will work with iCloud. Overall, though, Lion is a bridge to the future we'd happily use as our everyday OS.

OS X Lion has the functions I need to do my day-to-day work as well as the abilities to drive software innovation and growth through the future. I’ll be using Mac OS X Lion for the foreseeable future.

There are a few niggly points in the Lion’s den, such as reduced legibility in Finder sidebar icons, reduced virtual desktop options and issues with Windows shares. Then there’s the removal of Rosetta and the Front Row media centre, and the troubling insistence on restarting every application you leave open whenever you log back into your Mac. Yet the streamlining of certain interface elements, the added speed, and as-yet untested features such as Air Drop all conspire to make this a near-essential upgrade for most users. Priced at just 21 quid, it's an absolute steal.

Indeed, since Lion resolves several major gripes that have traditionally put off Windows users – including any-edge window resizing and full-screen applications – we suggest anyone curious about switching should take a look too. Lion makes the transition to the Mac platform smoother and more tempting than ever.

For existing Mac users with hardware that can handle Lion, I'd strongly recommend upgrading, though, if you like to err on the side of caution, you may want to wait for the point-one update that typically arrives a month or two after the first release. Lion is the best operating system ever made, and unless you have a strong reason for using anything else, you owe it to yourself to start enjoying its ease and power.

After a long period of relative stability on the Mac, Lion is a shock to the system. It's a radical revision, motivated in part by the vast influx of new Mac users coming to the platform from iOS, that makes the Mac a friendlier computer. Veteran Mac users who don’t like those changes can turn many of them off, or just opt not to use them. In the past, Apple has charged $129 for upgrades with far fewer improvements than this—and that price upgraded just a single system. At $30 for all the Macs in your world, the only reason not to upgrade to Lion is because you rely on old PowerPC-based apps that won’t run on it. Otherwise, it’s a more than fair price for a great upgrade.

If you're a Mac user, we feel it's worth the upgrade, though it's not such a leap that you'd have to upgrade immediately. Apple has managed to straddle a fine line between bringing in iOS features and accommodating long-time Mac users without pushing things too far. There are so many noticeable and welcome interface changes that you miss them when you go back. Lion feels more cohesive and has interface changes that simplify the experience, taking steps out without appearing to shed features. If you paid attention to the review, there were a number of instances where completing a task went from several steps (most often wading through Finder) to just one or two; that's progress.