By Stevie Smith Nov 1, 2007, 14:33 GMT
Although Apple Inc.’s long-awaited Leopard operating system has met with some worrying Windows-esque compatibility problems since its recent launch, the California-based computer company has this week trumpeted that its OS has still been warmly received at retail stockists.
Apple Inc.'s new Mac OS X 10.5 'Leopard' operating system has sold 2 million copies in its opening weekend at retail. Credit: Apple.
Specifically, Apple has revealed that opening weekend sales of its Leopard OS have reached as high as 2 million units. In terms of comparative performance based on prior Mac operating systems, Leopard’s predecessor, the Tiger OS, required more than four weeks at retail to shift the same amount, reports MacNewsWorld.
Released to retail on Friday, October 26, the long-awaited Leopard operating system arrived as the sixth version of the Mac OS X software, boasting some 300 new features when gauged against the Tiger OS. Apple is claiming that the swift success of Leopard underscores the company’s growing presence in the industry.
"Early indications are that Leopard will be a huge hit with customers," enthused Apple CEO Steve Jobs in an official press release, while also outlining that critical and consumer praise for Leopard is "making more people than ever think about switching to the Mac" platform.
While the performance of Apple’s new OS perhaps loses some of its punch considering that Windows Vista, Microsoft’s latest operating system, has sold some 88 million copies since its launch at the end of January this year, it is worth noting that Apple has access to around only one tenth of the user base enjoyed by Microsoft.
And yet, regardless of the somewhat limited consumer access restricting Apple and its Mac hardware, research specialist Gartner has recently revealed that the company has still managed to rise as high as third on the U.S. computer market following some of the best Q3 performance figures posted in a decade.
The Mac OS X 10.5 ‘Leopard’ operating system, which should have arrived in the summer, was delayed following a shift of focus by Apple towards its iconic iPhone handset, which hit retail on June 29.
The top-tier version of Leopard is priced at $129 USD – the same price as the Tiger OS – while a five-installation family version of Leopard is available for $199 USD.
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