Apple management is so pumped up over the advantages presented by its forthcoming Mac OS X Lion operating system that the company has been holding back the release of at least one new Mac refresh until the software is finalized, AppleInsider has learned.

The same methodology is believed to be in place for Thunderbolt-equipped versions of the Mac mini and LED Cinema Display, and will carry over Apple's forthcoming iOS devices like the next iPhone and iPod touch, which the company is similarly unwilling to ship without the iCloud-enabled iOS 5.0 software due this fall.

Any decision to relent on this approach would need to be prompted by unexpected delays in the release of either operating system that would prove disruptive to the company's fundamentals by preventing it to push out new hardware in-line with its internal models, according to other people familiar with Apple's thinking.

  Apple may freeze new Mac introductions until release of Mac OS X Lion