First, “a positive: Hardware support for [Apple’s OS X] Lion seems pretty extensive. Just about any Intel-based Mac released since the middle to latter part of 2006, meaning an Intel Core 2 Duo processor or better, will work with Lion,” Gene Steinberg writes for TechNightOwl. “A five-year Window is pretty good for Apple. At the same time, I expect that the $29 upgrade price for Snow Leopard, plus loads of new Macs sold since 10.6 arrived in August of 2009, only leaves a small number of eligible Mac users still using Leopard or Tiger.”
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“However, to upgrade to Lion from Leopard, it’s a double installation at best,” Steinberg writes. “First they have to upgrade to Snow Leopard, and upgrade that initial installation to 10.6.7 (Mac App Store debuted in 10.6.6). The reason is that Lion will only be available via that route. There will be no retail upgrade kits, no DVDs. That’s the price you pay for convenience, assuming downloading a 4GB file is convenient for you.”
Steinberg writes, “Once you’ve running 10.6.7 or later (and there’s a rumor of a 10.6.8 under development as we speak), you can then install Lion. Does this make sense for the company whose products ‘just work?'”
Read more in the full article, in which Steinberg asserts that, “at the very least, Apple ought to consider a combo installer DVD in a retail package at a special price, say $39,” here.
MacDailyNews Take: What do you think? Is Apple’s OS X Lion upgrade plan misguided? Are you running Mac OS X 10.6.7 Snow Leopard? Is a 4GB download a huge or non-issue for you?
I pay $40/month to Time Warner Cable for ~25 Mbps. You people need new ISPs.
I just got back from Afghanistan where $100 per month gets you an unreliable constantly reseting Internet connection that in theory is 128kbps down / 64kbps up but irl was more like 25kbps down / 16kbps up. At that rate, the war will be over by the time the Lion upgrade file is downloaded. It might be faster for apple to put Lion on a small flash drive and attach it to a carrier pigeon and send out the update with that method. Seriously.
Of course 10.8 is under development right now. What a stupid fucking statement.
This is immensely stupid stupid stupid. We have a few hundred computers. When we build images we ideally start with a fresh OS. I want a self contained Lion installer disc. Burned discs fail. I need something reliable and bullet proof.
Humpf…..well I will download it, I can always find a place with multimegabit internet. To all you smart asses criticizing people with slow internet, you can kiss mine. Why would I pay cumcast $60 for 25mbps speed so I can open my email in 10 miliseconds, there is a word for that, sucker. Still I’m not complaining about the download issue, just the large swarm of ego maniacal dip shits that populate these comments. That said they could offer a DVD for an extra fee, you know the make some butt stupid decisions from time to time even though they be coo.
How long would it take you to order something online and have it shipped to your house? Is that still a day or two excursion?
Not upgrading. Too many apps that are PPC only. This is the first time that I haven’t done a system upgrade on the day of its release since before System 7.6. I’ve been a lifelong Apple fan, but they’re really starting to lose touch with reality. It’s not like Macs have that many software options to begin with, why cripple that aspect even more? Apple failed big on this one.