OS X Lion was the first version of Apple’s desktop operating system to ship after the release of the Mac App Store, and the first version of OS X not distributed on DVD. To accommodate users unable to upgrade by digital download, Apple offered the OS X Lion USB Thumb Drive in 2011 and 2012.
At $69, it was significantly more expensive than the $29.99 App Store version of the operating system. While a similar thumb drive was not offered for subsequent releases of OS X, Apple did bundle the drive with MacBook Airs for a time prior to Lion’s release.
