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The history of Mac OS X pricing: How we got to free
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Features, PC / Laptop, Software,
We had a few readers email in yesterday after it was announced that OS X Mavericks would be free, a first for a major desktop operating system release. It seems a few of you are curious about how Apple got here, and what the history is as it relates to the pricing of OS X. So, here's a quick history lesson.
- 10.0 Cheetah: Released March 24, 2001 for $129
- 10.1 Puma: Released September 25, 2001 for $0
- 10.2 Jaguar: Released August 23, 2002 for $129
- 10.3 Panther: Released October 24, 2003 for $129
- 10.4 Tiger: Released April 29, 2005 for $129
- 10.5 Leopard: Released October 26, 2007 for $129
- 10.6 Snow Leopard: Released August 28, 2009 for $29
- 10.7 Lion: Released July 20, 2011 for $29
- 10.8 Mountain Lion: Released July 25, 2012 for $19
- 10.9 Mavericks: Released October 22, 2013 for $0
So, as you can see, both OS X 10.1 Puma and 10.9 Mavericks were released as free updates, however, Puma was released just six months after 10.0 Cheetah, so that would have been ridiculous if Apple has chosen to charge for it. Other than that anomaly, OS X updates remained at $129 each until Snow Leopard in 2009, which sold for $29. The last $129 version of OS X was Leopard, which saw massive delays due to Apple pulling engineers from it to work on iPhone OS 1.0 (now known as iOS.) Lion was also sold for $29, and was the first version of OS X to be available as a digital download from the Mac App Store. The following year, Mountain Lion debuted at just $19--the best bargain in OS X release history until yesterday, when Mavericks launched for free. The trend has always been that OS X updates would cost the same as the previous year, or less--never more (discounting the Puma issue, which was a huge bugfix patch.) As this point, it appears that OS X has gone the way of iOS, where all updates from here on out will be available for free, on an annual basis.
You can download OS X Mavericks, for free, right now.
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Safari 6.1 will also bring new sidebar, Shared Links to Mountain Lion
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: PC / Laptop, Software,
Safari 6.1 was announced during today's WWDC 2013 keynote, and brings a new Top Sites layout into the mix, along with a redesigned sidebar for accessing bookmarks, Reading List, and the new Shared Links section (which pulls in links that are shared by people you follow on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.) The features were shown as part of the new OS X Mavericks demo, but as it turns out, OS X Mountain Lion is going to get in on the new Safari love as well. We've actually got Safari 6.1 running here, and have included a screenshot above.
Apple releases OS X 10.8.4, highlighted by Wi-Fi & Exchange improvements
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop, Software,
Apple has just released OS X 10.8.4 for it's desktop and notebook computer lines. The latest update to Mountain Lion is mostly focused on stability and security, fixing things like Microsoft Exchange calendaring, corporate Wi-Fi issues, and the like. Safari 6.0.5 is also included in this release. Fire up the Mac App Store to grab it. Full changelog after the break.
Click to continue reading Apple releases OS X 10.8.4, highlighted by Wi-Fi & Exchange improvements
Apple seeds OS X 10.8.4 build 12E36 to developers
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop, Software,
Just before today's Apple Q2 2013 earnings call, the company released a new beta version of OS X 10.8.4 Mountain Lion to developers. Build 12E36 is now available to download through the Mac App Store if you're a developer, with focus areas on Wi-Fi, graphics drivers, and Safari.
iOS 7 development running behind schedule, Apple pulls OS X engineers to help
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Rumors, Software,
Word on the street is that Apple is behind schedule on iOS 7 due to the management shakeup that occurred when Scott Forstall was ousted from the company. Jony Ive has taken over as head of hardware and software design, and with that will come sweeping design changes within iOS. Daring Fireball's John Gruber has gone so far as to say that he's heard that Apple has had to pull engineers off os OS X 10.9 in order to help get iOS 7 ready for release.
It may sound odd, but Apple actually took a similar strategy back in 200, pulling developers off of OS X 10.5 Leopard in order to ensure that the iPhone would be ready on time, resulting in a four-month delay for the desktop OS. Of course, Apple had a lot less software engineers working on iPhone software back then, so it's pretty telling that with the expansive growth, there are still challenges getting iOS 7 out of door.
Apple releases OS X 10.8.3 to the public with Windows 8 support, Boot Camp updates, Safari update
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop, Software,
After a super long beta period, Apple has finally released OS X Mountain Lion 10.8.3, making it the longest period between updates in OS X history, leapfrogging the 10.4.8 to 10.4.9 update. Apple has included a bunch of new functionality in this release, including Boot Camp support for 3TB hard drives and Windows 8, updated Safari, and more. Here is the rundown.
- The ability to redeem iTunes gift cards in the Mac App Store using your Mac's built-in camera
- Boot Camp support for installing Windows 8
- Boot Camp support for Macs with a 3TB hard drive
- A fix for an issue that may cause Logic Pro to become unresponsive when using certain plug-ins
- A fix for an issue that may cause audio to stutter on 2011 iMacs
- Includes Safari 6.0.3
Launch the Mac App Store to grab the update now!
Apple seeds OS X 10.8.3 build 12D78 to developers
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop, Software,
In five days, OS X 10.8.3 will become the longest beat in the history of OS X. Today, Apple has seeded yet another build, 12D78, to developers for testing. As has been the case with the last few 10.8.3 previews of Mountain Lion, there are no major changes, and no known issues. Obviously, something must be up, though, because it's taking forever for this one to hit the public. The two builds before this one were 12D74 and 12D76, so the changes between versions have slowed substantially. Apple is asking devs to focus on AirPlay, AirPort, Game Center, graphics drivers, and Safari. Go and grab it is you've got a dev membership!
Apple seeds OS X 10.8.3 build 12D74 to developers
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop, Software,
Two weeks after releasing OS X 10.8.3 build 12D68, Apple has seeded build 12D74 to developers. As has been the case with the last few 10.8.3 previews of Mountain Lion, there are no major changes, and no known issues. This one is just taking a while to finally be released to the public for some reason. Apple is asking devs to focus on AirPlay, AirPort, Game Center, graphics drivers, and Safari. Go and grab it is you've got a dev membership!
Apple releases OS X 10.8.3 build 12D68 to developers
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop, Software,
Apple has released OS X Mountain Lion 10.8.3 build 12D68, about a week after the release of OS X 10.8.3 12D65. The company asks developers to focus on AirPlay, AirPort, Game Center, graphics drivers, and Safari. OS X 10.8.3 has seemed to be stuck in developer builds for quite a while, but as the timeframe between dev releases is getting shorter and shorter, that means that there is less and less to fix. If we find anything new, we'll let you know. Developers--grab this update in the Mac App Store.
Apple releases OS X 10.8.3 build 12D65 to developers
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop, Software,
Apple has seeded OS X 10.8.3 build 12D65 to developers just a week after releasing the 12D61 build. Apple is asking developers to focus on AirPlay, AirPort, Game Center, graphics drivers, and Safari in 12D65. The update also appears to fix the "File:///" bug that currently plagues OS X, where by typing that into a text field, you immediately crash the app you are working in. If you're a Mac dev, you can grab the update through the Mac App Store right now.
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