It used to be that we’d want our smartphones to be more like the laptops or PC computers we use every day. Originally, most of us were amazed that we could have at least some kind of computer within the palm of our hand. This is what Apple’s iPhone and Android devices now provide, especially when running a huge variety of amazing and powerful apps.

In today’s Wall Street Journal, Apple CEO Tim Cook is now aiming for the opposite – he wants the Mac to be more like the iPhone, not the other way around. A new version of Mac OS X was unveiled (in fact, the company is dropping the whole ‘Mac’ moniker and going with just OS X) codenamed ‘Mountain Lion.’

This next generation operating system, released to developers as a beta version, demonstrates further alignment between the smartphone and desktop world. In the article, Tim Cook is quoted as saying “We see that people are in love with a lot of apps and functionality here … Anywhere where that makes sense, we are going to move that over to Mac.”

Apps seem to be the, erm, killer app here, that’s for sure, and it’s clear that Apple is thinking of a future where the Mac computer OS X and the iPhone’s iOS coexist far more intimately. While all kinds of devices will continue to be manufactured, and probably maintain their unique characteristics, we'll see far more similarities in the software look, feel and apps they run.

One new feature of OS X Mountain Lion is its AirPlay capabilities. Current Apple iPhone and iPad users may already be familiar with this technology. AirPlay helps make sharing content between devices, whether they be laptops, phones or ‘smart’ TVs, even easier. Now that that capability will be extended to all the hardware in Apple’s arsenal we’re likely to see even closer synergy between every device in the connected home or office.

Soon the app itself will be the key. Whether you’re using it from a smartphone or a laptop is unlikely to be so important.