Apple has announced updates to its range of MacBook laptops and the OSX software, along with a new sweetener for developers – a new App Store for Mac devices.
The announcement comes just days after Apple announced lower than expected iPad sales, with chief executive Steve Jobs also using an unusual appearance in a conference call to attack tech rivals including Google, BlackBerry and HTC.
Jobs took the stage at San Francisco to announce the new OS X update, called “Lion”. The design philosophy behind the new software is “iOS meets OS X”, with many of the features from Apple’s handheld devices making their way to the company’s laptops.
“What is the philosophy about Lion?” Jobs asked. “That’s where Back to the Mac comes from. We started with OSX and we created a new version called iOS – it’s now used in the iPad as well. We’re inspired by some of those innovations. And we want to bring them back to the Mac. Mac OSX meets the iPad.”
Some of the new features include multi-touch gestures on the trackpad, app home screens, full-screen apps and auto-save. Apple is also launching a new feature called Mission Control that allows users to view everything running on the Mac and then navigate from there.
But Jobs also said the company is staying away from touch-screen Macs. For touch devices to work, he says, they can’t be vertical. “It gives great demo, but after a short period of time you get fatigue,” he said at the event. “It’s ergonomically terrible.”
One of the more interesting announcements was the introduction of FaceTime for the Mac. This feature, introduced with the iPhone 4, allows users to make video calls and this is the first sign that Apple is rolling it out to other devices.
The biggest announcement was the introduction of the App Store for Macs. The new marketplace will work exactly as the others for iPhones, iPads and iPod Touch devices. Users will be able to browse software for their laptops , and can buy using their existing Apple account.
While developers already make applications for Macs, this new marketplace will allow them to sell their software in an official infrastructure and give them access to a greater user base. Revenue will be split 70/30 in the developer’s favour, just as it is with the other App Stores.
The new App Store is also likely to produce a new type of software, different from the boxed, more complex programs available in the Apple Store online. These new apps could be lightweight and relatively easy to code, sitting somewhere between an iPhone App and a full-blown software program.
OS X Lion will be available in 2011, but the new Mac App Store will be available within 90 days, Jobs announced.
Meanwhile, the company also announced a range of new laptops, including updates to its MacBook Air range. The New MacBook Air will now come in a 13-inch and a new 11.6-inch model.
Apple says this is the MacBook that meets with the iPad. It uses an “instant-on” feature, uses a unibody casing and both models now have 30-day standby battery time. The 13-inch will have a seven-hour battery life, while the 11-inch will use five.
“We see these as the next generation of MacBooks,” Jobs said. Analysts have pointed out that as Apple has enjoyed runaway success with its iOS devices, the company’s Macs will eventually have to incorporate some of their more popular features as sales of traditional laptops decline.
A recent report from Morgan Stanley notes a decline in laptop sales that coincides with the release of the iPad in April.
The biggest draw card for the MacBook Air is that it’s so tiny. The smaller model is now just 1.7cm thick at the largest end, and 0.2 centimetres at the smallest end.
The new models are powered with 802.11n Wi-Fi, a Core 2 Duo processor and feature two USB ports, along with a MiniDisplay port, a headphone jack and an SD card. The new models start at $1,199.
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
