Apple said that in just one day, over one million users bought and downloaded Mac OS X Lion, the eighth release of its operating system.

Available through the Mac App Store for $29.99 (US), users are buying Lion faster than any other OS release in Apple's history, Apple claims.

"Lion is off to a great start, user reviews and industry reaction have been fantastic," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "Lion is a huge step forward, it's not only packed with innovative features but it's incredibly easy for users to update their Macs to the best OS we've ever made."

Lion introduces more than 250 new features to the Mac, including Multi-Touch gestures; system-wide support for full screen apps; Mission Control, an innovative view of everything running on your Mac; the Mac App Store, the best place to find and explore software; Launchpad, a new home for all your apps; and a completely redesigned Mail app.

The Mac App Store brings the App Store experience to the Mac so you can find new apps, buy them using your iTunes account, download and install them in just one step. The Mac App Store is built right into Lion and available for Snow Leopard users through Software Update as part of Mac OS X version 10.6.8.