I am running 10.5.8 and want to update, is mountain lion, lion, or snow leopard the best choice?

Best Answer

If your Mac does not have an Intel processor, you can not upgrade to any of them.

If your Mac has an Intel processor (any Intel processor) and at least 1 GB of memory, you can upgrade to Snow Leopard. (After install do "Software Updates" to bring up to OS 10.6.8.) You need Snow Leopard installed in order to upgrade to Lion or Mountain Lion.

(I am not certain whether Snow Leopard can be installed on Macs released after the introduction of Lion in mid-2011, at least not so that Snow Leopard supports all hardware features of newer Macs. But if you have OS 10.5.8, your Mac was introduced before 2011.)

I don't think Lion is available for purchase anymore.

If your Mac was released after mid-2007, and you have at least 2 GB of memory AND Snow Leopard OS 10.6.8 (or Lion) installed, then you can upgrade to Mountain Lion. Search the Apple website for "System Requirements for OS X Mountain Lion" for more details.

• Answered by Ewald W from Vancouve
• Feb 17, 2013
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