For existing Mac users with hardware that can handle Lion, I'd strongly recommend upgrading. 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.
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89
Conclusion: We like it
Apple's first earnest attempt to merge usability concepts from the iPhone and iPad with its desktop operating system, Lion is both a solid step forward and, at times, a slightly awkward amalgamation. People with lots of Apple devices can look forward to a more consistent user experience across their devices, even if sometimes that doesn't always translate well to the desktop. Either way, another major operating system upgrade from Apple for $30 is a no-brainer.
Critic reviews
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Mac OS X Lion is definitely a worthy upgrade for all Intel Mac users. Featuring several interface enhancements and useful new features across all the core apps, Mac OS X Lion is an excellent update for the price.
Read the full review →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.
Read the full review →Over the past decade, better technology has simply reduced the number of things that we need to care about. Lion is better technology. It marks the point where Mac OS X releases stop being defined by what's been added. From now on, Mac OS X should be judged by what's been removed.
Read the full review →Ultimately the verdict is this: 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.
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ryan
Personally, I find Lion to be kind of a strange release in the grand scheme of Apple's OS X releases over the past decade. Although it does introduce some key new features, Lion strikes me as an upgrade largely centered on applying Apple's learnings in mobile (i.e. iOS on the iPhone and iPad) to...
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TiliV
OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard was the first version of OS X that I found to be visually comfortable. Whether because of shoddy folder icons, gaudy brushed metal window trim, or wretched window management abilities, all previous versions of the OS drove me nuts in small ways, for one reason or another....
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Sinani201
I've been an unhappy Mac user for quite some time; I've been experiencing a lot of clunkiness from the Mac. When upgrading to Lion, I hoped that Apple would blow my mind and give me a nice fresh, new experience that would make me want to use a Mac again. But they failed. I looked through the...
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webbernet
Aside from minor annoyances it is a very solid system, and does not contain life threatening bugs except to people who want to use SMB/AFP based network shares! Lion dropped support for an older authentication method used in most store-bought NAS boxes and ones running open software like FreeNAS....
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dmnto
OS Lion is a combination of Mac OS X and iOS. They just work brilliant together. Lion has a very clean and polished user interface. It runs very fast and smooth. Dead simple to use too.
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realsoda
Lion is a great update and includes a lot of forward thinking, But it is not the "great leap" in computing that everyone was expecting. Save that for iOS 6/OSX 10.8.
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TgD
Mac OSX Lion is the continuation of the Mac OSX line, and they continue to try and make it similar to the iOS platform with launchpad. It is necessary for users who rely on Xcode 4 to upgrade, as the older versions have "lost" documentation, or Apple made it unavailable. Other quirks are that...
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caliopigio
Lion is a good improvement in the lineage of OS X, and bring some of the good stuff from the iOS front to the Mac. I love versions, full screen apps, autocorrection, etc.
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gank41
Although it is much snappier that SL, I find that Battery Life is horrible and Expose / Mission Control just isn't quite there yet (IMO). Unable to view Minimized Applications in either Expose or Mission Control is a huge bummer. But, it isn't the FINAL release.. Yet..
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How it stacks up
Instantly compare the Apple Mac OS X Lion (10.7) side by side with some of the top devices on gdgt!
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Other Apple OS / platforms
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Apple iOS 7 -
Apple OS X Mavericks (10.9) -
Apple OS X Mountain Lion (10.8) 89 -
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Apple iOS 5 93
Don't forget to check out these other devices by Apple, you might find something good!