Apple announced Mac OS X 10.7 Lion on June 6th and shortly there after renamed it to OS X Lion. If you are using either the client or server version of OS X Snow Leopard and you purchased a Mac on or after June 6th you are eligible for a free OS X Lion update under specific circumstances.
If you purchased a new Mac between June 6th and July 20th Apple will provide you with a free copy of OS X Lion. Customers purchasing Macs on or after July 21st that do not include OS X Lion are also eligible. The free copy of OS X Lion will be provided through the Lion Up to Date program.
Customers are now able to download the new operating system for free from the Mac App Store after qualifying for the Up-to-Date program. This will be the only location from where you’ll be able to get your free copy.
If you bought your Mac prior to June 6th you’ll have to shell out $29.99 for the desk top version of OS X Lion or $49.99 for the server version of OS X Lion.
The free update offer is only valid for 30 days after you’ve purchased your Mac and the clock started ticking today. OS X Lion was released today July 20th so you’ll have 30 days from today to claim your free copy before the offer expires. According to Apple orders for free updates must be placed by August 19th, 2011.
Lion is one of the best if not the best release of OS X since it first shipped over 10 years ago. I’m excited about the release of OS X Lion and you should be too.
So what are you waiting for? Go grab your free copy of OS X Lion now!
Updated 07/20/2011 at 8:08am PDT: Users are reporting problems in the comments about their attempts to get a redemption code from Apple for their free copy of OS X Lion. The problem appears to be with computers purchased through the Apple online store and does not seem to affect Apple Store retail purchases (i.e. like my recent iMac purchase). The system doesn’t recognize some of the serial numbers being submitted. According to the same comments Apple is aware of this issue and expects a resolution later today. I’ll reach out to Apple for more information.
