QuickBooks 2009 for Mac coming October 8

Intuit next month will begin shipping QuickBooks 2009 for Mac, an overhaul to its small business accounting software redesigned for Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard that leverages features such as Spotlight and Cover Flow.

The new release promises much closer functional parity with QuickBooks Pro 2009 for Windows, but will reportedly still lack some important functions like networking (multi-user) support.

One of the new features Intuit plans to tout is a redesigned Super Navigator home page that should make it easier for clients to manage their business by providing flowcharts for Customer, Vendor, and Transaction Centers.

The other major selling point will be something called Company Snapshots, or a unified dashboard offering greater visibility into the performance of a business through expense charts, customer balances, and key reminders. Company snapshots can be printed for consultant engagements and otherwise used to help clients better manage their business.

Outside of those two major features, other changes in QuickBooks 2009 largely center around improvements to pre-existing functions, such as improved iCal integration, and improved usability of Forms and List Views.

The new version will also introduce DirectConnect access for securely downloading bank and credit card transactions, and feature improvements to handling of batch invoicing.

Although Intuit has yet to issue a press release announcing formal availability, online retailer Amazon.com began taking pre-orders for the $200 software earlier this week, listing a release date of October 8th.

Company Snapshot groups graphs with key financial information.

Meanwhile, Ars noted earlier this week that the radical redesign of Quicken for Mac previewed for AppleInsider over 8 months ago at Macworld 2008 has thus far proven to be vaporware.