Apple Confirms Aperture to Be Removed From Mac App Store After Launch of Photos for OS X

Shortly after last week's deployment of OS X 10.10.3 to developers, Apple updated its official Aperture page on its website, adding a notice stating that Aperture will be removed from the Mac App Store when the Photos for OS X app launches.

The same notice can also be found in the app's Mac App Store description, as noted by MacGeneration [Google Translate]. Once removed from the Mac App Store, it will no longer be possible for new users to obtain the Aperture software, but those who have previously purchased Aperture will continue to be able to download it from the "Purchases" tab.

apertureappstoreremoval
Apple first announced the shuttering of both Aperture and iPhoto back in June, but the company did not specify at that time that the software would be removed from the Mac App Store entirely. Instead, it said only that there would be "no new development of Aperture" as it focused its resources on Photos for OS X.

Our first look at Photos for OS X came last week alongside the developer launch of 10.10.3, as several sites were given preview copies of the software ahead of its release. Reviews have suggested that the Photos for OS X feature set lies somewhere in between that of the consumer-oriented iPhoto and the pro-oriented Aperture.

iPhoto users will find they have more control over photos with new tools, while Aperture users will be disappointed to find that many tools, like the loupe, brushable adjustments, and custom metadata are missing. The general opinion is that in its current iteration, the Photos for OS X software is not suitable for professional users, and those who currently use Aperture will want to continue with the software or switch to an alternative like Lightroom.

The Photos for OS X software could see updates over the coming months to add more pro-oriented features such as third-party plugins, and there are certainly some benefits to the app -- it integrates with iCloud Photo Library, its editing tools are easy to use, and it's said to be much faster than iPhoto.

Photos for OS X will be released in the spring when the OS X 10.10.3 update is seeded to the public. Ahead of the official launch, Apple is planning to do a public beta, though a date for that is unknown.

Related Forum: OS X Yosemite

Popular Stories

M5 MacBook Pro

Apple Announces New 14-Inch MacBook Pro With M5 Chip

Wednesday October 15, 2025 6:07 am PDT by
Apple today updated the 14-inch MacBook Pro base model with its new M5 chip, which is also available in updated iPad Pro and Vision Pro models. In addition, the base 14-inch MacBook Pro can now be configured with up to 4TB of storage on Apple's online store, whereas the previous model maxed out at 2TB. However, the maximum amount of unified RAM available for this model remains 32GB. Like...
Apple iPad Pro hero M5

Apple Debuts New iPad Pro With M5 Chip, Faster Charging, and More

Wednesday October 15, 2025 6:16 am PDT by
Apple today announced the next-generation iPad Pro, featuring the custom-designed M5, C1X, and N1 chips. The M5 chip has up to a 10-core CPU, with four performance cores and six efficiency cores. It features a next-generation GPU with Neural Accelerator in each core, allowing the new iPad Pro to deliver up to 3.5x the AI performance than the previous model, and a third-generation ray-tracing ...
apple oct 2024 mac tease

Apple Expected to Announce These Two to Three Products 'This Week'

Sunday October 12, 2025 7:05 am PDT by
Apple plans to announce new products "this week," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Apple's "Mac Your Calendars" teaser last October In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said the products set to be updated this week include the iPad Pro, Vision Pro, and "likely" the base 14-inch MacBook Pro, with all three likely to receive a spec bump with Apple's next-generation M5 chip. Gurman...
maxresdefault

Here's Everything Apple Announced Today

Wednesday October 15, 2025 3:54 pm PDT by
We didn't get a second fall event this year, but Apple did unveil updated products with a series of press releases that went out today. The M5 chip made an appearance in new MacBook Pro, Vision Pro, and iPad Pro models. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. We've rounded up our coverage and highlighted the main feature changes for each device below. MacBook Pro M5...
joz macbook tease

Apple Teases Upcoming M5 MacBook Pro Launch: 'Something Powerful is Coming'

Tuesday October 14, 2025 11:59 am PDT by
Apple marketing chief Greg Joswiak today teased the launch of an upcoming product, saying "something powerful is coming" on social media. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. A short animation accompanying Joswiak's teaser reveals a brief glimpse of a MacBook Pro along with the words "coming soon." The shape of the MacBook Pro is a V, which is the Roman numeral...
airpods max 2024 colors

AirPods Max 2: Everything We Know So Far

Tuesday October 14, 2025 8:43 am PDT by
Apple's AirPods Max have now been available for almost five years, so what do we know about the second-generation version? According to Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the new AirPods Max will be lighter than the current ones, but exactly how much is as yet known. The current AirPods Max weigh 0.85 pounds (386.2 grams), excluding the charging case, making it one of the heavier...
Vision Pro M5 Announcement

Apple Updates Vision Pro With M5 Chip, Dual Knit Band, and 120Hz Support

Wednesday October 15, 2025 6:14 am PDT by
Apple today updated the Vision Pro headset with its next-generation M5 chip for faster performance, and a more comfortable Dual Knit Band. The M5 chip has a 10-core CPU, a 10-core GPU with Neural Accelerators, and a 16-core Neural Engine, and we have confirmed the Vision Pro still has 16GB of RAM. With the M5 chip, the Vision Pro offers faster performance and longer battery life compared...
macbook pro blue

Apple's M5 MacBook Pro Imminent: What to Expect

Tuesday October 14, 2025 4:35 pm PDT by
Apple is going to launch a new version of the MacBook Pro as soon as tomorrow, so we thought we'd go over what to expect from Apple's upcoming Mac. M5 Chip The MacBook Pro will be one of the first new devices to use the next-generation M5 chip, which will replace the M4 chip. The M5 is built on TSMC's more advanced 3-nanometer process, and it will bring speed and efficiency improvements. ...
MacBook Pro M5 Screen

New MacBook Pro Does Not Include a Charger in the Box in Europe

Wednesday October 15, 2025 6:59 am PDT by
The new 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M5 chip does not include a charger in the box in European countries, including the U.K., Ireland, Germany, Italy, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Norway, and others, according to Apple's online store. In the U.S. and all other countries outside of Europe, the new MacBook Pro comes with Apple's 70W USB-C Power Adapter, but European customers miss out....
HomePod mini and Apple TV

Apple's Next Rumored Products: New HomePod Mini, Apple TV, and More

Thursday October 16, 2025 9:13 am PDT by
Apple on Wednesday updated the 14-inch MacBook Pro, iPad Pro, and Vision Pro with its next-generation M5 chip, but previous rumors have indicated that the company still plans to announce at least a few additional products before the end of the year. The following Apple products have at one point been rumored to be updated in 2025, although it is unclear if the timeframe for any of them has...

Top Rated Comments

northernbaldy Avatar
139 months ago
Photos for OS X is such a huge improvement over iPhoto and Aperture this makes sense. It's just incredible that Apple is going to be giving away the world's most advanced photo application. I hope nobody complains.

have you used aperture or photos??

photos is dumbed down crap!
yes its free
yes its better than iPhoto
but its no aperture replacement
Score: 53 Votes (Like | Disagree)
aaronvan Avatar
139 months ago
Excellent. Now replace iTunes with something that works.
Score: 50 Votes (Like | Disagree)
northernbaldy Avatar
139 months ago
its a shame that apple are chasing the money and scrapping off pro applications
Score: 35 Votes (Like | Disagree)
gugy Avatar
139 months ago
Too bad, I'll miss Aperture.
Score: 29 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cRuNcHiE Avatar
139 months ago
Photos for OS X is such a huge improvement over iPhoto and Aperture this makes sense. It's just incredible that Apple is going to be giving away the world's most advanced photo application. I hope nobody complains.

* Sponsored by Apple
Score: 28 Votes (Like | Disagree)
voyagerd Avatar
139 months ago
I'm still going to keep using Aperture.
Score: 28 Votes (Like | Disagree)