Back to the Mac: The Executive Summary

Earlier today, Steve Jobs addressed the Mac faithful at an event focused on Apple computers and software. The announcements weren’t all that surprising, but it’s all good news for consumers and developers alike. The new Macbook Airs and a preview of OS X 10.7 stole the show.

On the software side, we got a sneak peak at the future of OS X. 10.7 Lion will bring with it some major interface changes, ones that borrow heavily from iOS, the mobile operating system used on the iPhone and iPad. We’ll also see the introduction of a Mac App Store within a few months, with the same 70/30 revenue split for developers in place at its iOS predecessor. Available today is a free FaceTime for Mac beta, as well as an updated iLife suite that really impresses.

As for hardware, Apple used the event to announce a brand new MacBook Air. Two, in fact; one sporting a 13.3-inch screen, like the previous model, and one with a smaller 11.6-inch display. Both do away entirely with hard drives, opting instead for flash memory storage, which allows for instant-on capabilities.

That’s it in a nutshell, but be sure to hop over to TheAppleBlog for our detailed coverage.

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