Apple OS X Mountain Lion Now Available to Mac Users

Mac aficionados will be pleased to know that Apple's latest desktop operating system, the OS X Mountain Lion, is now available.

The much-anticipated OS is the ninth major release from Apple and is available as a direct download from the Mac App Store.

The Mountain Lion update is available as an upgrade from Lion or Snow Leopard for $19.99 and according to Apple includes more than 200 new features, including iCloud integration, an all-new Messages app, Notification Center, system-wide Sharing, Facebook (News - Alert) integration, Dictation, AirPlay Mirroring and Game Center and much more.

“People are going to love the new features in Mountain Lion and how easy it is to download and install from the Mac App Store,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “With iCloud integration, Mountain Lion is even easier to set up, and your important information stays up to date across all your devices so you can keep editing documents, taking notes, creating reminders, and continue conversations whether you started on a Mac, iPhone (News - Alert) or iPad.”

Mountain Lion, for now, will only be available as a download from Apple's online market and requires Lion or Snow Leopard (OS X v10.6.8 or later), 2GB of memory and 8GB of available space. It also requires a Mac with an Intel (News - Alert) Core 2 Duo, Core i3, Core i5, Core i7 or Xeon processor.

Those running a version of Snow Leopard prior to the June 2011 10.6.8 must update their machines before downloading the latest upgrade.

The Mountain Lion OS is meant to have more than 200 features, but some are more significant and noticeable than others. One of the most exciting features is AirPlay (News - Alert) Mirroring, which lets individuals wirelessly send an up-to-1080p secure stream of what’s on their Mac to an HDTV using Apple TV, or send audio to a receiver or speakers that use AirPlay.

Another nifty feature is the complete iCloud integration for setting up mail, contacts, calendar, messages, reminders and notes. Game Center and Facebook integration, seen on the iOS devices, also have made their way to the Mac ecosystem.

“Additional features in Mountain Lion include the revolutionary new Gatekeeper, which makes downloading software from the Internet safer; Power Nap, which automatically updates your apps and system while your Mac is asleep; and a faster Safari browser,” Apple stated in a company news release. “New features for China include significantly improved text input, a new Chinese Dictionary, easy setup with popular email providers, Baidu search in Safari, and built-in sharing to Sina Weibo and popular video websites Youku and Tudou.”

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