As close as you'll get to making
running Windows a pleasure
Parallels was the first company to come up
with a virtualization platform for the Mac, allowing you to run Windows, Linux
and a bunch of rival operating systems without having to buy a PC. Version 8
adds support for Android virtual machines, but with an eye on the typical user
we tested it with Windows 8, which is due to ship at the end of October.
Installing the 64-bit edition took 28
minutes, exactly the same as VMware's Fusion 5, on our MacBook Pro Mid 2010
with 2.4GHz processor and 4GB of RAM. Parallels assigned the virtual machine
one CPU core and 1GB of memory. As with Fusion, we used the custom option to
retain greater control over the installation process, but you can instead opt
for express installation if you're happy for it to default to the most common
settings. If you're already running Windows on your Mac under Boot Camp, you
can import your virtual machine from there.
Cold-booting Windows 8 for a second time
took one minute and three seconds, while resuming from a suspended state took
43 seconds. Both of these times were beaten by their equivalents in VMware
Fusion 5 on our test machine.
However, Parallels Desktop 8's integration
with OS X was better than we found it in Fusion5. It goes beyond gesture
controls and Notification Center access to extend OS X's native dictation tools
into Windows apps; even on a low-grade consumer broadband connection (voice
recognition is carried out via the internet), this worked efficiently in the
virtual machine.
Cheekily, though, Parallels also adds a
Windows Applications folder to the OS X Dock, whether you like it or not. You
can remove it if you didn't want it, but it would have made sense to ask before
cluttering your workspace.
With
dozens of new and improved features, Parallels Desktop 8 gives you the best of
both worlds! Now it's possible to run Windows, Linux and more side-by-side with
Mac OS X. It's like having two computers in one!
It's long been possible to share OS X
folders with Windows - and vice versa – in Parallels Desktop, and that
continues in version 8, but it's now also easier to share files between your
two operating systems simply by running the virtualized machine in a window and
dragging documents backwards and forwards between the two environments.
Multiple instances of the same windows app
are gathered together in Mission Control, and when running full screen they
correctly appear as virtual desktops. However, as with Fusion, the Windows 8
Charms don't appear when you're using Coherence mode, Parallels' take on
seamlessly mixing virtualized and OS X applications without the surrounding
Windows or Linux interface. The Charms are easier to call up than they are in
Fusion when running Windows in a window, though, because a new sticky window
edge briefly clings to your mouse pointer rather than letting it slip straight
out into OS X.
Right-clicking a Windows app in the OS X
Dock calls up the regular contextual menu, appended to which there's now an Add
to Launch Pad option. This works with Metro-style apps as well as full
applications, so if you prefer the Windows weather app to OS X's weather
widget, for example, this will let you find it quickly.
There's also a new Presentation Wizard that
disables the screen savers in both Windows and OS X simultaneously, and shuts
down any incoming notifications. This is great for any time you're in front of
an audience and don't want anything interrupting your demo.
Run
Windows, Linux and more side-by-side with Mac OS X. Use thousands of
applications - Quicken, Outlook, Project, Access, Internet Explorer, Quickbooks
and more
Parallels also adds a new button to the
Safari toolbar in OS X which opens your current page in Internet Explorer for
Windows. The theory seems to be that pages that don't render well in Safari
should be fixed by a quick jump to Explorer. But Internet Explorer 10 and
Safari 6 both score the full 100 in the Acids CSS test, while IE 10 scores only
319 with six bonus points in the HTML5 compliance tests (html5test.com) and is
beaten by Safari 6 with 376 plus eight bonus points. Perhaps an Open in Safari
button in IE would be more appropriate.
Desktop 8 definitely feels more tightly
integrated than Fusion 5. Not only is it easier to share files between
operating systems, but simple touches like the ability to run the Metro
environment smaller than 1024 X 768, Microsoft's stated minimum – which Fusion
couldn't do in our tests - makes it more flexible. There's plenty here to
justify the $56.78 upgrade from Parallels Desktop 7.
Desktop 8 is noticeably more expensive than
Fusion, but we reckon it's worth it, so we'd encourage new buyers to look
towards Parallels in the first instance. The lower price of Windows 8 ($40.55
inc VAT) makes it more affordable to get setup from scratch. Existing Fusion
customers, though, shouldn't be too quick to jump ship. Fusion 5 remains a
sturdy way to run Windows on the Mac, and there's something to be said for
sticking with what you know- especially at a lower price.
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information
Price: $105.45
From: parallels.com
Needs
·
Intel Core 2 Duo processor
·
2GB RAM (4-GB recommended)
·
700MB free hard drive space for Parallels
·
At least 15GB free hard drive space for each
virtual machine
·
OS X 10.6.8 or later, OS X 10.7A or later, or
OS X 10.8 or later
·
Installation data for guest OS
Pro
·
Drag-and-drop files sharing between
environments
·
Tiled interface can be run at less that
minimum resolution
·
Dictation in Windows applications
Con
·
Relatively expensive
·
Ratings: 4/5
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