Apple’s Newest OS, Snow Leopard

Could your Mac use a kick in the pants? Snow Leopard, Apple’s latest operating system, might do the trick. Available today, the $30 upgrade is more of a performance booster than a feature-packed OS, which might explain why it’s the cheapest upgrade Apple has sold in eight years. Snow Leopard frees up 7 GB of space for people installing from Leopard, and it generally helps the system run faster. Other features include an improved Exposé that works for individual applications, context-sensitive menus, the VoiceOver suite of functions for the visually impaired and Chinese character input. Analysts expect Apple to sell 2.5 to 3 million copies this quarter — less than Leopard, but not bad for an upgrade that’s mostly incremental.