Mountain Lion renews Apple's vertical integration commitment

This week it's the Apple product users working with a Mac, an iPad, and an iPhone that will profit most from the desktop operating system upgrade OS X Mountain Lion. A large cross-section of features included in the operating system made exclusively for Mac computers makes this the most well-integrated system that Apple's ever made, connecting the desktop environment with the mobile in several ways that'll have users of non-Apple hardware wishing they'd thought twice about picking up their Android, Windows Phone, or BlackBerry. With this move Apple has once again stuck the question in people's minds: should I buy an iPad and/or an iPhone? What am I waiting for?

Apple made it clear yesterday during their earnings call for their financial third quarter of 2012 that part of their sales were hurt due to the massive amount of rumors floating around the web speaking on future versions of their hardware. When we speak about the iPhone 5, the iPad mini, and so forth, we put the question into yours and our own minds: "Should I buy a device now, or should I wait until the next generation?" Any hardware company would have you pick up their current model if they had the choice – no question about it.

So what does OS X Mountain Lion (see our full review here) do to make it clear that Apple means business when it comes to picking up any one of their devices, not just their future releases? They set up a collection of connections between their iProducts and their Mac computers that work on the current generation as well as future generations alike.

In Mac OS X Mountain Lion you'll be able to use iCloud for more media than ever, with desktop integration working to keep all of your files – such as documents, for example – part of the same collection no matter what device you're on. Apple's Messages app now exists on the desktop as well as the iPad and iPhone, the same being true of Reminders and Notes. Those of you used to working with notifications in your mobile OS will be glad to see Notification Center working with OS X Mountain Lion.

Then there's Game Center – a social media connection between gamers on the iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, and now Mac as well. Dictation now works on your Mac with Mountain Lion with the same icon you see in Siri on both your iPhone and iPad, and AirPlay Mirroring makes you want an Apple TV with its lovely simple functionality.

Apple is not about to let up on the idea that their current AND future product sets are connected so well that it's always your first option to purchase them all for the ease of it. Stay tuned as the web tightens!