14 DAY TRIAL // Well-placed sources claim to have learned that Apple is planning to distribute Mac OS X 10.7 through the Mac App Store when the operating system makes its public debut this summer.
Already showing signs of extinction, optical media is now the least preferred means of software distribution within Apple.
The company is phasing out boxed software, including MobileMe, iWork and iLife, and is now planning to apply the same treatment to its desktop operating system, according to people who claim to be familiar with Apple's plans.
The main reason is, of course, future computers lacking an optical drive.
By eliminating the hardware, which has already become irrelevant to many end customers, Apple will have more room for additional components and features, as well as bigger batteries for more power on the go.
And you don't need discs to also distribute Lion physically, as exemplified by the USB thumb drive shipping with the most recent MacBook Air computers.
Up until the last refresh, MacBook Air customers were forced to employ cumbersome methods of reinstalling their operating system - either by remotely installing Mac OS X from another computer, or by connecting an external optical drive via USB.
Needless to point out, it’s a hassle, and one that should come with the purchase of such an expensive laptop.
But Apple not only dropped its price significantly, it also enhanced it inside and out, and threw in the Snow Leopard key drive too.
Apple will most likely ship these with Lion on them in a few months. The trait should rub off on future MacBook Pros that will most likely lack an optical unit as well.
The Mac App Store has been one of the primary marketing elements surrounding Lion, and it only makes sense to have them both cater to one another when the new Mac OS X launches at Worldwide Developers Conference 2011 on June 6.