Back To The Mac Event Scheduled For This Week: OS X 10.7 And New MacBook Air?

A lot of people wondered what would happen to Apple once they became Apple, Inc. and not Apple Computer. Many thought that this signaled the end of the Mac computer, with Apple to now focus primarily on the iPhone, iPad and other accessories and small devices. But Apple's computer sales have consistently risen since the iPhone's introduction, proving that Apple may have changed their name but they didn't forget about their towers and laptops.

Apple still refreshes their hardware line about as infrequently as any major company. Some people love the tactic, and others cannot stand it. But recently, Apple really has turned a deaf ear to their computer line. This year, all we've heard about is the iPhone 4, the iPad and a brand new line of iPod devices. Not one single major mention of the computer line has been made. Apple even branched out and created a trackpad, but no computer talk.



Now, it's finally time to go Back to the Mac. This Wednesday, Apple will hold a press event in California where they will potentially talk about the next incoming version of Mac OS X as well as some form of computer. The icon shown here was included with the press invite, hinting that OS X 10.7 (Lion?) would be a major topic of discussion. OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard is only a year old, which makes talk of 10.7 seem somewhat premature. But we are guessing that the OS won't actually ship at this event; it'll simply be introduced and teased.

On the computer side, there is far more room for debate. Is the thin aluminum sheet evidence that a refreshed MacBook, MacBook Pro or MacBook Air is coming? Or does it signal the introduction of an entirely new Mac machine? Maybe even a Mac netbook? All will be revealed in just a few days -- what do you think Apple will bring to the table before the important Q4 season?
Tags:  Apple, OS X, Mac, Software, lion