Parallels Desktop 3.0 for Mac [OLD VERSION]
![Parallels Desktop 3.0 for Mac [OLD VERSION]](/Images/B000GHIV2Q/medium.jpg) | Average Customer Rating: Recommend The first solution that gives Apple users the ability to run Windows, Linux or any other operating system and their critical applications at the same time as Mac OS X--without rebooting--on any Intel-powered iMac, Mac Mini, MacBook or MacBook Pro. The killer app for Mac is now even better than ever! Parallels Desktop for Mac enables you to run Windows, Linux, and more side-by-side with Mac OS X on any Intel-powered… Product details and pricing info |
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273 Customer Reviews Posted
- Like Having Two Computers in One!
- In my business, I'm forced to use two Windows-only products: Visio and Project. Rather than buy another PC, I tried Parallels. So far, the product has exceeded my expectations.
The only issue I've had is in using an external USB disk drive. But the solution to the problem of Parallels not recognizing it is simple. It's just a matter of first "ejecting" the disk from Finder, unplugging the disk's USB cable from the Mac, then launching Parallels. Once Windows loads, plug the disk drive back in and all is cool. - 2008-08-31, 1 of 1 people found this review helpful, Rated:
- Unbelievable to see Windows and Mac side by side
- This is, without a doubt, one of the best-conceived applications ever. I recently bought an iMac computer, but still have several applications that run on Windows. I bought Parallels and a nice, clean version of Windows XP Home. Both installed without a problem, and now I have a version of Windows on my Mac that is not laden down with mysterious programs in the start-up routine. It runs better, faster and with fewer glitches than Windows ran on my PC. What's best is that in coherence mode, Windows programs can run right next to Mac programs. You sometimes forget what programs go with which operating system.
Windows, however, is still Windows, so at start-up, you have to wait a few minutes before launching a flurry of applications, since Windows is still grinding away at something mysterious in the background. Thus, I start Windows, and let it run for 5 minutes before opening my first application, and from that point forward, no problem.
I highly recommend this duo to anyone who loves working on a Mac but still has Windows-based programs that must be used. - 2008-08-27, 2 of 2 people found this review helpful, Rated:
- Excellent product with poor support
- First the good -- I've been using Parallels for over 1.5 years now, primarily with Windows 2000 but also with XP, under both Tiger and now Leopard. Excellent integration with OS X makes using it virtually seamless, although normally I run it full screen on one display and OS X on my second display (iMac with additional display). No stability problems or crashing, except as noted below.
The bad -- best support is their user-to-user forums, which they keep fairly hidden. They are slow to repair problems. Early versions had problems with some of my USB devices, although now they all work. Linux support of Parallels went from poor to great back to poor again as they have failed to keep up with advances.
I am happy enough not to switch, or even try, Fusion. I'd suggest that anyone starting out download the 30 day trial versions of both and compare. Start with Parallels -- Fusion apparently will import a Parallels VM which may eliminate Windows re-licensing problems. (I don't know for sure though). - 2008-08-25, 0 of 0 people found this review helpful, Rated:
- Half-baked - don't waste your time
- Parallels Desktop works marginally when running a Windows XP in a virtual machine. If you are planning to use your Boot Camp installation as a VM (as advertised by Parallels), however, it's really not ready for prime time. There are quite a few issues:
- many features described in the product literature do not work if you are using a Boot Camp installation (including some of the most exciting, such as snapshots)
- You can very easily corrupt your installation of Windows XP by doing something "wrong" - for example, hibernating XP inside Parallels and then booting it natively through Boot Camp
- errors that occur when running your Boot Camp installation inside Parallels can easily (and often) prevent you from natively running your boot camp installation. A time-consuming Windows re-install is required.
In summary, this software shows promise and some interesting features, but is not stable enough to trust with anything more than casual use. I would certainly not trust it with any business-critical data again.
Do yourself a favor and read the Parallels Desktop support forums before buying and see what you're getting in to, especially if you intend to use your Boot Camp installation both natively and inside Parallels. - 2008-08-23, 0 of 0 people found this review helpful, Rated:
- I love this application
- I've used Parallels since v1.0 and this new v3.0 is just great. There are a few custom applications in our office that only run on Windows XP and Parallels lets me use them right along side my native Mac applications. It's stable, reliable, and easy to setup and use. It's even better than having a PC on my desk next to my Mac, because I can copy/paste info between applications!
- 2008-08-23, 0 of 0 people found this review helpful, Rated:
