Apple's macOS beta timings hint at later Sierra launch

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So how long have we got to wait for the next version of Apple's desktop operating system to turn up? Well, we know that macOS Sierra is due to pitch up in the autumn, but new speculation is pointing to the middle of October as the likely arrival date.

And we should stress that this is purely speculation, but Computerworld has thought things through based on the pace with which Apple released preview versions of macOS Sierra, compared to the buildup proceeding the launch of El Capitan last year.

Essentially, with Sierra, Apple is around two weeks behind where El Capitan was at this point in 2015. That's based on the fact that the sixth preview version of macOS Sierra emerged at the start of this week for devs, and the sixth beta of El Capitan hit home on August 3 (with previous versions of both more or less mirroring this fortnight gap).

Two-week lag

Hence if we add that two-week lag onto the release date of El Capitan, which was September 30, we end up with a probable mid-October launch for macOS Sierra (most likely the week ending October 16). That would be just less than two months away, and it seems a perfectly realistic landing date.

Apple released the first public beta of macOS Sierra back on July 7, allowing the general computing public at large to get a taste of the upcoming operating system, which brings Siri to the desktop, along with a number of other new features like picture-in picture mode and a Universal Clipboard (allowing for the likes of direct cutting and pasting between iOS and macOS devices).

Another point worth noting is that Sierra is more demanding than El Capitan – you can check out the hardware requirements for the new OS here.

• Also check out our round-up of the latest macOS Sierra news and features

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