Could Lion help sell more Macs?

The wait is over: OS X Lion is finally here. The release comes just one day after Apple announced soaring Mac sales, climbing by some 15 per cent over the past year, but will the release of a new OS help to boost already strong Mac sales?

There is some precedent. PC sales got a jolt when Microsoft released Windows 7, as people upgraded their systems to accomodate the new software. Similarly, OS X helped to sell more Macs when it finally arrived on the market.

Then again, Lion is not exactly a radical shift. Other than a few new features and support for iCloud, there's not much to get excited about.

However, Gartner analyst Carolina Milanesi believes that the release of Lion will definitely help Mac sales.

"I do think that Lion, coupled with the release of the new MacBook Air, will help drive Mac sales as the familiar look and feel of the new OS will be obvious to iOS users and it will make it even easier for them to make the leap from a PC to a Mac," she told V3.co.uk.

The real boost for Mac sales could come later this month when Apple puts the iCloud service live.

"iCloud for me will be like the cherry on the cake as it will make sharing content across devices very easy, adding value to the ecosystem," Milanesi said.

"For many users the peace of mind of buying a song or an app and even your pics once, and have them downloaded across all your devices at the same time, will be a big hook into the Apple ecosystem."