July 20, 2011, 7:06 PM — Apple has just released Mac OS X Lion and the Mac app store is humming with downloads. Before you take the plunge with Lion, you should make sure that your machine can actually run it properly.
Apple has a complete list of requirements on its site that you should check before installing Lion. These requirements are broken down into technical requirements and feature requirements.
Technical requirements
You'll need to have at least the hardware requirements listed below to run Lion.
Mac computer with an Intel Core 2 Duo, Core i3, Core i5, Core i7, or Xeon processor 2GB of memory OS X v10.6.6 or later (v10.6.8 recommended) 7GB of available space. Some features require an Apple ID; terms apply. Some features require a compatible Internet service provider; fees may apply.
Feature requirements
Not everyone will use all of the features available in Lion, but you should check the ones listed on Apple's site carefully to make sure you're ready to go with the ones you need.
Here's a handy list of features on Apple's site. Be sure to scan the requirements before installing Lion on your system if you want to use these features.
Time Machine
Boot Camp
Photo Booth
FaceTime
Exchange Support
Screen Sharing
QuickTime X Movie Capture
OpenCL
AirDrop
iChat
Gestures
VoiceOver Gestures
Mac App Store
Recovery partition
Be aware that Mac OS X Lion also comes with tools for repairing your Mac via Recovery HD. Recovery HD is new and lets you fix disks or reinstall Lion without a physical disc. To use it, just hold down Command-R during start up or you can opt to hold the Option key down during startup and select Recovery HD.
