Boot Camp is the easy way to run Windows on a Mac, but it has one major drawback: it requires you to reboot. And that can be a rather big disruption of your work, depending on how much time you spend in either Mac OS X or Windows.
Virtualization software like Parallels Desktop 7 avoids this glaring issue altogether, as it lets you run a full copy of Windows from within Mac OS X. But is it actually the best of both worlds or just a bag of compromises?
Parallels Desktop vs. Boot Camp: Which is best for running Windows on a Mac? Parallels Desktop 7 promises Apple users the best Windows experience on the Mac. I use windows 7 with a Mac Air with bootcamp. I want to change to 'Parallels' to avoid having to reboot each time I want to use Mac or Windows. Can I uninstall Windows 7 and reinstall it through.
[ VDI shoot-out: VMware View 5 and Citrix XenDesktop 5.5 ]
Virtualization for serious work?
In part 1 of my Running Windows on a Mac series, I made it very clear that virtualization solutions such as Parallels or VMware Fusion are merely a compromise for anyone who needs to get serious work done or has to spend several hours in full-screen Windows.
And I didn't just base that on my past experience with virtualization, but also one some benchmarks Ed Bott performed this summer.
It was only a couple of days after that article went live that Parallels came out with version 7 of their 'Parallels Desktop'. And they didn't exactly play small: Parallels promised not just the full-blown Lion support (Launchpad, full screen mode, Mission Control) and the ability to run Mac OS X Lion as a guest machine. They also made a big promise of running Windows 'without compromising performance'. The company also claims that Parallels Desktop 7 runs 45% faster using Windows 7 and 60% faster on 3D-accelerated applications (games, rendering, etc.) than before. These claims, coupled with enhanced support for USB, networking and sound cards (7.1 surround sound in a virtual machine), made me curious.
Can I run my Windows applications under Lion on Parallels Desktop 7 with no compromise? Can I run it all day?
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For this shootout, I took the plunge and used Parallels Desktop 7 for over four weeks. After having some severe performance issues with running Windows 8 Developer Preview under Parallels, I decided to use Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 under Mac OS X Lion for my test. Here's what I found:
Pricing and installation
Boot Camp is free and pre-installed on every Mac (post 2006). Parallels, on the other hand, charges you $79.99 ($49.99 for upgrade) for its Mac virtualization product. In both cases, that also excludes the price of a Windows 7 license, which you'll need! So, if you're adding Windows 7 Home Premium to the mix, think at least $99 (for the system builder DVD) of additional charges for the privilege of running Windows on your Mac.
Boot Camp doesn't support Windows XP or Vista, so if you're going the Boot Camp route on OS X Lion, you're basically stuck with Windows 7. I can imagine this being a deal breaker for some companies.
Parallels Desktop 7, however, fully supports Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7. And it doesn't stop there. Parallels supports Chrome OS, Linux and even the Windows 8 Developer Preview, which makes it a full-blown virtual PC solution and not just a way of running Windows on your Mac. In fact, a built-in downloader allows you to grab the respective ISOs and install them automatically. I think that's quite a killer feature for IT pros: Getting all of these OSes to run on a Mac is torture, so in terms of OS support and pure simplicity, Parallels just blows Boot Camp away. Period.
The Windows 7 installation procedure is fairly straightforward in both Boot Camp and Parallels Desktop 7. You insert the DVD or the ISO, perform some initial configuration and run the Windows installer. However, I went a slightly different route. I actually used Parallels to virtualize my Boot Camp partition. Yes, Parallels Desktop 7 allows you to select your pre-existing Windows 7 partition on your Mac and just run it as it if were an actual virtual machine. This is actually the only way to compare performance of Boot Camp versus Parallels, since I'm testing both solutions on the exact same configuration with the exact same number of programs installed and identical settings. Neat.
Parallels Desktop for Mac has been around as long as my first Intel powered Mac. I purchased Parallels Desktop (I believe it was version 3) on the same receipt as my first Mac. It was a black MacBook, and I was in love. But, my old relationship with Windows still had a hold on me. If not on my heart, then on my pocketbook. I had numerous applications I used with Windows, and even though many of them had versions for Mac, or there were equally good apps that would run under Mac, my billfold wouldn’t allow that for awhile, so I tried Parallels Desktop.
Overview
For those unfamiliar with Parallels Desktop 7, it’s an application you can run on your Mac that will allow you to run Windows and various other operating systems side by side with your Mac applications. (You will need an installation package and a valid license to install and run any Operating Systems inside Parallels Desktop.) It can be set up to run full screen or in a window, and can also run in what Parallels calls “Coherence” mode, where the Windows apps appear on your desktop just as native Mac apps would.
Operation
While Parallels Desktop has always done a satisfactory job running Windows and its applications, they have found ways in each update to improve the integration and performance of the application. Here are a few of the new features in version 7.
For the purposes of this review, I downloaded and installed the Fedora 15 VM that’s available through the wizard. It took less than 15 minutes to download, extract, and install the VM.
All of this was done automatically by the wizard. When it was finished, the Fedora showed up in the list of available VM’s, and with a single click, I was using a Fedora 15 machine. Most users will probably be using Parallels Desktop 7 to run a virtual Windows machine, but it’s great to have the option of running other Intel based operating Systems on your Mac.
Once your virtual machine is installed and setup to your satisfaction, you’ll find its performance is near that of the OS running on an actual PC. Disk access, application speed, and graphic performance is more than satisfactory. I’m not sure I would run any graphically intensive games that have been recently released for the PC on the VM, but for day to day business and productivity apps the VMs provide more than adequate performance. Parallels desktop 11 for mac (oem).
I had previously purchased the iOS Parallels app, and updated it for this review. The app works smoothly, and allows you to remotely access your Mac, and the virtual machines running on your Mac. It’s a bit of a pain to use a mouse based OS with a touch device, but if you need to remotely access your Mac and its virtual machines, it more than does the job.
Verdict
Parallels Desktop 7 is worth the update, especially for Mac OS X Lion users, and the improved performance and ease of use is well worth the price. The integration with Lion makes using your virtual machines alongside your Lion desktop easier than ever. https://clevernic643.weebly.com/blog/parallels-for-mac-students.
If you’re a new Mac user, and you still need to have access to the world of Windows, Parallels Desktop 7 is a great solution, allowing you to move into the world of Mac, while still being able to run any Windows apps you’re still in need of. https://clevernic643.weebly.com/blog/download-parallels-12-for-mac.
Price: $79.99 Full Version, $49.99 Upgrade Version (From Parallels Desktop version 5 or 6). Both versions available online from the Parallels website.
iOS version available on the App Store ($4.99 for a limited time, Standard price will be $19.99 – App Store Link) How To Install Windows 7 Using Parallels For Mac
Rating: 4/5[rating:4]
Pros
Parallels Pro
Cons
Windows 7 Parallels
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