Snow Leopard shipping August 28th for $29, order now
By Thomas Ricker 
posted August 24th 2009 8:28AM
posted August 24th 2009 8:28AM
While you wait for that order to ship, Apple wants you to know that Snow Leopard's Finder is more responsive, Mail loads messages twice as fast, Time Machine will complete initial backups 80 percent faster, and a 64-bit version of Safari 4 is 50 percent faster than its predecessors. There's even QuickTime X with a redesigned player that lets users view, record, trim and share video. Of course, this release also includes Grand Central Dispatch, a new way for devs to take advantage of multi-core processors as well as OpenCL support to accelerate apps with the help of that idling graphics processor. Oh, and out of the box support for Microsoft Exchange too. All in all, a worthy update, especially for the price.
P.S. Requires Intel-based Mac.
I didn't read it as a troll - it was just mind-crushingly stupid.
If you want to make an anti-Apple comment, be my guest. I suggest you pick an angle besides calling Snow Leopard a service pack (a package of previously released smaller updates, combo updates for OS X and service packs in Windows) and calling everyone who prefers OS X an Apple fanboy. Directly insulting a person based on their opinion, internet or no internet, won't get you anywhere. Sick of getting ranked down? Calm down and make a sane comment...
When i was watching the video 'Anatomy of a Mac' on the Apple website: http://www.apple.com/macosx/what-is-macosx/
I noticed when he was scrolling through the dock there was a new logo for iMovie.
Not sure what this means, just thought i would let you know
P.S.
PLEASE COPY AND PASTE SO THE ENGADGET SEE'S THIS!
Same as my icon. iLife 2009.
I still use A PowerBook G4 running at 1.67ghz. I was waiting to Upgrade to an Intel based Mac for quite a wile now and the time has finally come. OS 10.6 is what I have been waiting for far a long time now, My PowerBook G4 served me well for over 4 years now without a hitch, I never had a single problem with it and I am extremely satisfied with it, even till today I don't really feel like I'm on an outdated computer and believe me I use some pretty extreme Apps like Logic Pro 8 and Ableton Live for audio and Final Cut Pro for Video Production and the only thing I feel lag in is the time it takes to composite video. I'm sure Snow Leopard will do it 4 to 8 times faster on a New MacBook Pro with Intel processors and the new OpenCL technology should take advantage of the graphics processor and I can't even imagine how much more speed gains I can expect with that. Well as for my 17'" PowerBook G4 I guess I'll give it to my 4 year old, He loves computers as he watches DVDs and goes to youtube or noggin.com to watch cartoons and play games, at his early age already he is a computer user and impresses his grandparents, so we should see at least another few years of use from my trusty, flawless PowerBook.
I think both companies (Apple & Microsoft) use two different nomenclatures when it comes to their products. Apple breaks it down like the following format:
OS Platform [dot] OS Version [dot] OS Update
Microsoft breaks it down like the following format:
OS Version [dot] Service Pack
I know it's a bit more complex, but that's the "high-level" view. Microsoft only has one OS platform, Windows. Apple, on the other hand, is currently on their OS X platform. If there is an OS XI (OS 11), that will be a whole new platform with a whole new "chassis". However, it's not about service packs or OS's. If you ask me, different iterations of releases are changing either the underpinnings, the look, or both.
In my opinion, Snow Leopard is a small jump up from Leopard, but it drastically changes the feel of "Leopard" from behind the scenes. It's like taking a VW Jetta vs VW GLI. They're similar cars, but two totally different engines, but with similar interiors. Is it a service pack? Not necessarily since there are significant differences between Leopard and Snow Leopard. You can't really take a Jetta engine and drop it in a GLI without making numerous changes (just a high-level analogy).
Ultimately, the question is not "is this a Service Pack" but rather, "are the changes that this version of the software brings sufficient to me to justify the price tag"? Anything else is, frankly, immaterial. This is a question that needs to be asked of any software upgrade, be it for your operating system or any other application that you use.
@Kelmon:
I totally agree with you. However, I can justify $29 for an OS upgrade but spending upwards of $150 for an upgrade of Windows is complicated. When I was in school, upgrade pricing for Windows was extremely nice (~$20), but the real-world pricing is a bit steep.
You know I am still amazed at how strong the rivalry is 20 some years later between Apple fans and MS fans.
I wish gaming rivalries had lasted like back in the old days. I would still be hating Nintendo while supporting Sega because of my absolute love of arcade style games.
The rivalry between MS and Apple has lasted because the companies themselves lasted (ironically enough, Apple owes its continued existence to MS, but that's a whole other topic). Sega hasn't made a console in nearly a decade, and time isn't friendly to old technology. There aren't going to be any fanboy wars between the XBox 360 and Dreamcast, just like there weren't between the Playstation and NES.
Commodore C64 vs Spectrum Rubber Keys
It's funny since the rivalry seemed so important back then yet is ridiculous when you think about it now since both companies went out of business. I wonder whether the situation will be the same here in 20-years time...
Does anyone know what time the release party will be on friday? AKA when the apple stores close and reopen, and all the employees act like everyone who comes into the store has just performed a fancy show, and deserves a standing ovation, with presents?
I think it depends on where you plan to go and in which country. If I recall correctly, the Leopard release was at about 8pm here in Belgium from my local Apple Authorised Reseller in Leuven. I presume the release time is not co-ordinated around the world but I may be incorrect with that.
I don't really care about "initial backup" times for time machine anymore, as I did that months ago. what I DO care about a great deal is making the incremental backups faster. I don't appreciate time machine running nearly every minute of every day because it's hourly backup of 15mb is taking nearly an hour to complete from "preparing" to "finishing". so frustrating. it's a good damn thing this time capsule is the most quiet drive I've ever encountered, but I do hear the whirring and it's slightly annoying.
Even without all the stupid "service pack arguments, it's still a good deal. I spent $30 a few years ago to get Quicktime Pro so I could easily trim and resave video clips. That's built into Quicktime X, and you get all the other stuff, too.
PS, changing from a 32 bit operating system to a 64 bit operating system is NOT a service pack. Repairing security holes and memory leaks IS a service pack.
And if I remember correctly, I paid $100 to "upgrade" my Windows 98 to Windows Me so I could get some video and photo eye candy. Now, that was money NOT well spent...
why did leopard upgrade from tiger cost $99 and this one only costs $29?
Snow Leopard is an almost complete rewrite of Leopard from a 32 bit system to a 64 bit system. New features have been added, like Grand Central, that users will never see.
Users like to pay for things they see. Users won't see Grand Central, Open GL, 64 bit, or any of the other improvements Apple has made. BUT, developers will benefit greatly from these improvements, and users will eventually see the speed differences.
The problem is, Apple needs to get its user base on one version (i.e. Snow Leopard) before devs will take advantage of these features. By pricing it at less than a week's worth of Starbucks, they can almost guarantee that most users will upgrade.
Not to restart the operating system flame war, but it's controversial moves like this that make OSX such a compact operating system that is universally stable (my machine not withstanding ;-)) By encouraging all users to upgrade by pricing the operating system upgrades competitively, Apple can service 80% of the customer base with one version. Those that lag (still on Tiger or older systems) can get OS support, but are not guaranteed support in 3rd party software. Windows, on the other hand, keeps most of the old functionality, while adding new features in each upgrade. This accounts for the "bloat" that a lot of windows users complain about. While some appreciate the fact that they can still play Doom from the late '90's, most would benefit by losing some legacy support and encouraging upgrades!
He's headed for that operating system.
That's no operating system. That's a service pack!
There's no way. It's too big to be a service pack!
jusssssst pre-ordered!!!
Basically, it boils down to this -- if the user base is willing to pay for the upgrade, its not more a service pack. it means the users 'understand' that more goes to an upgrade than just new features. It is the want that defines it all, because, you couldn't really differentiate windows 95 through ME. XP was the real upgrade (IMHO the best windows os out there).
I've got nothing to say that hasn't been said.
Gamma 2.2 by default, huh? Impressive move.
$29 in the U.S. and $35 in Canada, hmmm the nearest U.S. mall for me is Bellingham I guess I'll do a little shopping and buy the software as well as currently with our exchange rate it's $31 not $35+tax.
Not an Apple fan at all, but $29 is refreshing to see.
I only paid $59 for the Windows 7 upgrade.
Actually, the one I'm using now was free (Release Candidate) and will remain functional until mid-2010, so it was a cheaper, bigger upgrade than Snow Leopard.
And I did all this after selling my MacBook, switching back to Windows, and buying an ASUS.
And how is windows 7 bigger exacty. All Microsoft did was to sort out Vista, and add a few visual things. Snow Leopard is a complete rewrite, with far more under the hood changes than win 7. Just because Windows 7 adds some features, does not mean that it is bigger or better.
Well, liam, when you add new USEFUL features AND can re-write what is underneath to provide better stability and performance, it's more of an upgrade than what you get with snow leopard. There is no doubt about it in my mind, I use both Windows and OSX, but Windows 7 is much more productive than any version of OSX, and since Snow Leopard provides no new functionality, I can safely assume that this will hold true.
If One Is A Service Pack, They Are Both Service Packs.™
i installed it but why it says no to 64 bit???? i thru it on my 8core mac pro
System Software Overview:
System Version: Mac OS X 10.6 (10A432)
Kernel Version: Darwin 10.0.0
Boot Volume: Macintosh
Boot Mode: Normal
Computer Name: Cybertron
User Name: XXXXXX (OrionPax)
Secure Virtual Memory: Not Enabled
64-bit Kernel and Extensions: No
Time since boot: 5:09
To boot x86_64 kernel on Snow Leopard, edit this file:
/Library/Preferences/SystemConfiguration/com.apple.Boot.plist
find:
Kernel Flags
and change it to
Kernel Flags
arch=x86_64
Every company the uses an animal as a means of PR should donate a portion of the sales to protecting that animal! Apple should donate some of their mad money to snow leopard conservation.
hey TNN thanks for the reply i changed it and rebooted its still 32 bit.. heres the change i made
Kernel
mach_kernel
Kernel Flags arch=x86_64
thanks its fixed..
System Software Overview:
System Version: Mac OS X 10.6 (10A432)
Kernel Version: Darwin 10.0.0
Boot Volume: Macintosh
Boot Mode: Normal
Computer Name: Cybertron
User Name: XXXXXX (OrionPax)
Secure Virtual Memory: Not Enabled
64-bit Kernel and Extensions: Yes
Time since boot: 2 minutes
Hello,
I recently bought my (jan2009) macbook and was just curious if people here think this is a necessary upgrade or not really?
Thank you in advance
I would upgrade since it will hugely increase the performance on your macbook and because it is only $29.
This is a 100% no-brainer upgrade. If you have an Intel Mac, you NEED to upgrade to Snow Leopard. It's significantly better in every way than Leopard because of all the work that's been done on the back end to make it faster, more efficient and more stable.
I was just up at my local Best Buy trying to trick them into selling me a copy. No luck.
they probably don't have it yet. Apple is so tight fisted it probably won't arrive until Thursday night. and you can bet the fines if it does show up before then and is sold will be major. like pay for Steve Jobs to get new liver and two new kidneys major.
well got a pre ordered copy coming to me on friday!
Been eagerly awaiting this.
will we be able to load a single user disk on 2 computers like you could with leopard, I dont want to have to buy snow leopard family pack just for 2 computers, nor do I want to buy snow leopard for each computer =/
Yes, because Snow Leopard, like every other version of the Mac OS ever, is not serialized. However, doing that violates Apple's EULA.
I have Snow Leopard for a week on my Mac Pro.
We're all very happy for you. Here's a god damn cookie.
Hasn't anyone else noticed that the Apple Snow Leopard page, and several others in the ordering process, says "Ships: Delivers August 28th"?
If you are expecting to receive a box on Friday, you are out of luck - I verified with 1-800-my-apple that 8/28 is the SHIP date, not the DELIVERY date...
The upgrade is $24.99 on Amazon.