Apple has seeded the usual technology reviewers with early copies of Mac OS X Leopard for review. The reviews were published tonight. Overall, Leopard is described to be a solid upgrade with only minor bugs encountered in the testing by the reviewers. David Pogue specifically states that he was using the final version of Leopard for a week prior to the review. Compatibility with existing applications is also described as good, and upgrades from existing Tiger installs appeared to go smoothly.
NYTimes - David Pogue "The most serious misstep in Leopard is its new see-through menus. .... Often, Apples snazzy graphics are justifiable because they make the Mac more fun to use. In this case, though, nothing is gained, and much is lost." "Otherwise, the only cause for pause is the usual minor set of 1.0 bugs, which Apple generally fixes with software updates after a major release." "Leopard is powerful, polished and carefully conceived. Happy surprises, and very few disappointments, lie around every corner."
Wall Street Journal - Walt Mossberg "I did notice a few drawbacks, but they were minor." "In fact, every piece of software and hardware I tried on two Leopard-equipped Macs -- a loaned laptop from Apple and my own upgraded iMac -- worked fine, exhibiting none of the compatibility problems that continue to plague Vista." "Leopard isn't a must-have for current Mac owners, but it adds a lot of value."
USA Today - Edward Baig "I migrated to Leopard from the last OS X version, Tiger, without pain on a MacBook laptop and my own iMac desktop"
Apple is launching Mac OS X Leopard on Friday, October 26th at 6 p.m. There have been a few scattered reports that Mac OS X Leopard has already arrived in the hands of some lucky customers today, but no unboxing photos have yet been published or submitted.
Apple is entering its most significant leadership transition in more than a decade as multiple senior executives prepare to depart and CEO Tim Cook begins to shape the company's next generation of leaders, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
In the latest edition of his "Power On" newsletter, Gurman explained that Jeff Williams, who was viewed as Cook's potential successor for several...
Tuesday October 7, 2025 11:27 am PDT by Juli Clover
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3, prior-generation AirPods Pro 2, and the AirPods 4 models. The firmware has a build number of 8A358, up from 8A356.
There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the prior 8A356 update added iOS 26 features to the AirPods Pro 2, AirPods Pro 3, and AirPods 4 with ANC. The software introduced better audio quality ...
Wednesday October 1, 2025 1:26 pm PDT by Joe Rossignol
iOS 26 was released last month, but the software train never stops, and iOS 26.1 beta testing is already underway. So far, iOS 26.1 makes both Apple Intelligence and Live Translation on compatible AirPods available in additional languages, and it includes some other minor changes across Apple Music, Calendar, Photos, and Safari.
More features and changes will follow in future versions,...
Monday October 6, 2025 11:56 am PDT by Juli Clover
With the second beta of iOS 26.1, Apple updated the design of alarms set on the iPhone, making them harder to dismiss than before.
Stopping an alarm in iOS 26.1 beta 2 requires a new Slide to Stop gesture rather than a simple tap. You can continue to tap to snooze an alarm, but if you want to turn it off entirely, you need to use a swipe.
Transitioning from a tap to a slide gesture to...
Monday October 6, 2025 5:05 am PDT by Tim Hardwick
A new iPad mini is "absolutely" on the way, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. So what should we expect from the successor to the iPad mini 7 that Apple released a year ago?
Processor and Performance
Apple is working on a next-generation version of the iPad mini (codename J510/J511) that features the A19 Pro chip, according to information found in code that Apple mistakenly shared in...
After launching new iPhones last month, Apple is promoting iCloud+ with a prominent banner on its home page, in a bid to boost its services revenue. In addition to more storage, all iCloud+ plans include five perks for iPhone users.
As a refresher, iCloud includes 5GB of storage for free. If you want extra storage, you need to subscribe to an iCloud+ plan. In the United States, prices range...
Apple released the second beta of iOS 26.1 and iPadOS 26.1, introducing useful changes to alarms, multitasking on the iPad, and more. There are also subtle tweaks to some of the Liquid Glass design elements as Apple continues to refine iOS 26.
Alarms and Timers
Alarms set using the Clock app now have a slide to stop button rather than a tap to stop button on the Lock Screen. To snooze an...
Saturday October 4, 2025 8:19 am PDT by Joe Rossignol
Apple's website offers a list of nearly 200 new features and changes (PDF file) included in the software update, released last month.
Apple also shared equivalent lists for iPadOS 26 and macOS Tahoe.
iOS 26 is compatible with the iPhone 11 and newer. To install the update, open the Settings app on your iPhone, tap on General, and tap on Software Update.
Below, we have highlighted eight ...
Supplies of the 14-inch M4 MacBook Pro model appear to be constrained amid rumors that an upgraded M5 model could launch as soon as this year.
As noted by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, custom configurations of the M4 MacBook Pro model have a delayed shipping date and will not be delivered to customers until October 23 to 28. The restricted supply could be an indication that Apple is planning to...
