With the next version of Apple?s OS X operating system for its Mac computers, the company has one clear message: If you?re going to buy one Apple product, you might as well keep buying more.
Apple released a preview on Thursday of the software, called Mountain Lion. It introduces several new features that move it closer to iOS, the software running on iPhones and iPads. While Apple is the world?s biggest smartphone maker, its share of the PC market is still small, so tying the two together could help it sell more computers.
New OS includes some apps and features that were previously exclusive to Apple?s mobile devices: Messages, Notes, Reminders and Notification Centre. And it has a strong focus on iCloud, Apple?s online service for storing and synchronising data between mobile devices and Macs.
When users first start up Mountain Lion, they are asked to enter their iCloud credentials. This way, content like notes, messages and event reminders can be easily shared between multiple Apple devices. For example, if a user jots something down in the Notes app on an iPhone or iPad, that same note will appear in the Notes app in Mountain Lion on a Mac.
With the Mountain Lion update, Apple is calling the overall operating system OS X, instead of Mac OS X. This move and the continuing convergence between Macs and iOS devices raises questions about whether one day, the two products will run the same operating system.
Apple is creating a similar look and feel for the two operating systems to create a sense of familiarity among its different computing platforms, which could make customers more loyal to the brand. In other words, the similarities and new features mean that if you own an iPhone, it makes more sense to buy a Mac as opposed to a Windows PC. Or if you own a Mac, you might as well get an iPhone or iPad, as opposed to an Android device.
Apple released the early version of Mountain Lion on Thursday to get a head start on making apps for the operating system. The official Mountain Lion upgrade is due for release this summer, one year after the release of Mac OS X Lion, Apple?s current Mac OS.
An Apple spokesman said no executives were available to comment.