If you’re a Mac user who needs quick and fast access to a Windows installation, then in many cases it’s a good idea to go with a Virtual Machine. Parallels is one of the most popular virtualization options for Mac users wishing to run Windows, and the latest version, Parallels 13, makes it ridiculously easy to get up and running.
Via what essentially amounts to an unattended installation of Windows 10, Parallels 13 can have you up and running, from download to usage, in just a few minutes. Watch our brief video walkthrough for a demonstration.
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If you have already installed Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows 8, or Windows 7 on your Mac using Boot Camp, you can set Parallels Desktop to run Windows from the Boot Camp Partition or import Windows and your data from Boot Camp into Parallels Desktop as a new virtual machine. Parallels Desktop is ready for macOS High Sierra and supports a variety of operating systems, including Windows 10, Ubuntu and other Linux distributions, and older versions of Windows and Mac OS X. The Installation Assistant optimizes your VM settings and performance for your primary usage scenario, such as productivity, design, development, testing, or gaming.
- A new standalone app called Parallels Toolbox for Mac is a set of 20 utilities that offer one-click functions for things like screen casting, media downloads, and file management (unzipping.
- Parallels Desktop 13 for Mac received an update on Thursday to include full compatibility with the new Apple File System (APFS) and HEVC video standard included in macOS High Sierra. With APFS support, Parallels Desktop 13.1 can take advantage of Apple’s cross-platform replacement for HFS+.
- Optimized and ready for macOS High Sierra and the Windows 10 Creators Update, Parallels Desktop 13 for Mac allows you to run Windows 10, 8.1, and 7, as well as Linux, Google Chrome OS, and other operating systems on your Mac without rebooting.
When it comes to running Windows on the Mac, there are quite a few options to explore. You can now with a tried an true Windows Boot camp installation, a Windows To Go install, or one of the many virtualization options available.
There are free virtualization options available, but if you’re looking for sheer ease of use and dead-simple installation, Parallels 13 is hard to beat. You can go from not having Windows, to having a Windows 10 installation in just a few clicks. Best of all, the majority of the install process is completely unattended, so you can just set it and forget it.
Video walkthrough
As you might expect from a major new release, Parallels 13 includes several new features that are enhancements over previous versions of the software. Most notably, it also officially supports macOS High Sierra.
One of my favorite new features is the new Picture-in-Picture mode, which allows you to keep a virtual instance on screen at all times. This is handy for being able to monitor one more more virtual machines simultaneously, while still working in macOS.
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There is also extensive utilization of the MacBook Pro Touch Bar in Parallels 13. Although I no longer own a machine donning a Touch Bar, users can expect to be able to interface directly with Windows applications using the dynamic input method.
There are other new items in Parallels 13, including People Bar integration directly in the macOS Dock. This features allows users to have one-click access to frequently used contacts, and comes with more overall flexibility in the Parallels environment than it does on Windows itself.
But of all things included with this latest version of Parallels, I most appreciate the sheer ease-of-use provided by the software. Installing Windows, frankly, couldn’t be easier, and being able to run multiple virtualized software instances via Picture-in-Picture is a very nice feature to have.
Some may have rightly questioned my decision to upgrade my 5K iMac with 40 GB of RAM, but such a choice pays off when running more than one virtual machine. In that case, the more RAM the better, since you must individually assign each instance with resources from your overall system pool. It also means that the upcoming iMac Pro’s 8, 10, and 18-core processor options will be well-suited for virtualization. Just be sure to get as much RAM as you can, since it won’t be user-replaceable.
To be sure, Parallels 13 is an investment, especially when you consider that using Boot Camp, or software like Virtual Box is free. However, you’re paying for sheer convenience in the case of Parallels. There’s no need to restart your Mac into Windows, and installation is more or less effortless. Performance won’t be as good as running Windows directly, but virtualization has made significant strides over the past few years. For example, Parallels will even be able to take advantage of external GPU resources once Apple unlocks that ability in macOS High Sierra next spring. If you value convenience, then the $80 price of admission may be worth it to you. Yo ucan buy directly from Parallels here or on Amazon here.
We’re giving away two copies of Parallels 13 for free. Here’s how to win:
Leave a comment on our @9to5Mac Parallels 13 Instagram post telling us how you plan on using the virtualization software. The first two valid replies will receive a free activation code via Instagram DM, so make sure you follow us there.
Update: giveaway winners (@_dlmc88_ and @derexed) have been selected. Thank you to all who entered. Stay tuned for more giveaways.
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A regular cycle of annual upgrades has established Parallels Desktop as the leading virtualisation tool for Mac users who need to run Windows apps and software tools that aren't normally available on the Mac. Those upgrades also tend to coincide with new versions of macOS itself, so with macOS Mojave now in the final stages of beta testing it's time for version 14 of Parallels Desktop to make its debut.
Last year's upgrade to v13 largely focused on catching up with recent developments in Mac hardware, such as the Touch Bar on Apple's latest MacBook Pro laptops. In contrast, v14 is more forward-looking, allowing you to create Windows virtual machines (VMs) that support new technologies, such as Intel's high-performance AVX-512 instruction set, which is used in the current Xeon-based iMac Pro, as well as the next generation of Cannon Lake chips. The developers have also improved OpenGL support for Windows VMs in order to enhance performance for a number of graphics-intensive apps, such as the OriginLab range of data analysis tools, which haven't run well within the virtual machine environment in the past.
There have been performance improvements in other areas too, with Parallels claiming that Coherence mode, which hides the Windows desktop so that Windows apps simply appear on the Mac desktop alongside native Mac apps, provides 17 percent higher frame rates when running graphics software. Launch and suspend times for virtual machines are also improved, along with performance of the Windows 'virtual disk'. And, for developers who may need to run multiple virtual machines with different operating systems, there's a Disk Space Wizard that helps to reduce the overall size of each virtual machine file.
Parallels always likes to support Apple's latest eye-candy features, so Windows virtual machines in Parallels Desktop 14 will be able to use the new Quick Look markup features that are due to arrive with macOS Mojave. The Touch Bar on the MacBook Pro laptops will now work with additional Windows apps, including QuickBooks and Microsoft Visual Studio, displaying menu commands from those apps directly on the Touch Bar. And, on the Windows side of the fence, Windows 10 virtual machines will now allow you to use a pressure-sensitive stylus or trackpad with Windows Ink.
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Parallels also informed us that it should be possible to accelerate graphics performance on a Windows VM using an external GPU (eGPU), such as the Blackmagic eGPU that Apple is currently promoting.
