The good: New Finder features; better interface responsiveness and overall speed, even on legacy hardware; Safari includes improved performance and RSS; QuickTime 7.0 offers higher-resolution video; new Automator allows systemwide scripting; Core Data and Core Image open up new opportunities to developers; better cross-platform compatibility.

The bad: Most upgrades are hidden under the hood; features the average user will notice, such as Mail, clash with Apple's own user interface design; some features are unavailable on hardware older than a year or two.

The bottom line: Though its new user features have mixed appeal, Tiger's technological changes and speed improvements make this an enticing upgrade, especially for those who passed on Panther.

Read full review of the Apple Mac OS X v10.4 Tiger Family Pack »