A Tour of the new Mac App Store: Our first impressions

So, we’ve installed 10.6.6 and now we’re going to bring you our impressions of the Mac App Store, so bear with us as we dive in.

As you can see, in 10.6.6 the App Store is built right in, next to the Finder icon in the OSX Dock by default although it can be moved if you choose. We’ve seen some users complain that they can’t find the icon. In that case, check the Applications folder in Finder. From there you can drag it into the Dock.

Here’s what the app looks like once you open it up, with a range of New And Noteworthy apps available including big names like Angry Birds, Bejewelled 3, the new official Twitter app for Mac and Apple’s own apps like Aperture.

Individual apps have huge screenshots on their individual dedicated pages, with the customer ratings and comments we’re used to seeing in the iOS Store.

Once you’ve entered your Apple ID and agreed to some new terms and conditions, installing an app is as easy as,er, clicking Install. Within a few seconds, the new Twitter for Mac was right there in our dock and ready to use.

Maybe we didn’t notice with Twitter, but upon purchasing Angry Birds, the app icon ‘jumped’ out of the App Store and into our dock, where it began loading with a progress bar.

The top bar of the App Store features five which will be familiar to iPhone, iPod touch and iPad users.

Our verdict

The Mac App Store is a goldmine in the making for Apple. Downloading apps is fast and simple. Perhaps too simple, as well-known Mac addict Dom McAllister, just found out after spending £44.99 at the click of a button.

Copying the look and ease of use of the iOS Store, we can seriously see developers (and Apple) making a lot of money here. We’re going to dig properly into some apps now and see how they fare.