With Parallels Desktop for Mac, you can seamlessly run both Windows and Mac OS X Lion applications side-by-side with speed, control and confidence. Setting up Parallels Desktop for Mac is simple both Windows and Mac OS X - on one seamless desktop. Multiple view modes make it possible for you to customize the level of integration between Mac and Windows without compromising performance. Parallels Mobile App for iPhone and iPad links you back to the to your Mac and Windows applications. You can even use Mac OS X Lion features like Launchpad and Mission Control with your Windows applications, and run Mac OS X Lion as a guest operating system.
Features:
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Use a wide variety of 3D design programs and games with full DirectX 9.0c/9Ex and Shader Model 3 support
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Use the graphics capabilities and unique features in Windows applications whether you?re a gamer, student, architect, designer or engineer
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Use Mac OX Lion features like Launchpad and Mission Control with your Windows applications
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Seamlessly run Windows and its applications side by side with Mac OS X and its applications on a single Mac
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Moving your old PC to a Mac is a breeze; if you need Windows, conveniently purchase and download it in the new Parallels Wizard
Product Details:
Product Length:
1.25 inches
Product Width:
5.25 inches
Product Height:
7.5 inches
Package Length:
7.6 inches
Package Width:
5.3 inches
Package Height:
1.7 inches
Package Weight:
0.2 pounds
Average Customer Rating:
based on 417 reviews
System Requirements:
Platform:
Mac
Media:
DVD-ROM
Item Quantity:
1
Customer Reviews:
Average Customer Review:
( 417 customer reviews )
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
109 of 120 found the following review helpful:
A little better then Parallels 6Sep 07, 2011
By John E. Scott I am not going to go into my whole experience with Parallels. I have had good and bad with all versions. The problem is three fold in how well Parallels will work. You have the host OS which can be Snow Leopard (very mature) Lion (has its own quirks yet) or maybe your still with Leopard. The second is your hardware, because running not only a Mac OS but then a program that runs in OS X and also runs a version of Windows is going to need RAM and a decent CPU. The third thing is to decide if you want to run Windows native too for things like gaming. If so consider installing BootCamp from Apple first. Its free and it will make Parallels easier too. Now for Parallels 7 review. It is faster on my 2010 Macbook Air then Parallels 6 to a point. I am limited to 2GB RAM so any virtual OS is going to have to deal with that limitation. If you don't tend to run a lot of programs in OS X and/or Windows at once then 2GB will do. But you will notice slowdowns at times. If you have Lion OS BootCamp will limit you to Windows 7. Parallels is the way to go if you want XP or cringe :( Vista. Parallels 7 does take advantage of some of Lion's new features. Full screen for one. It does make Windows look as though your running only Windows. But if your not a Lion user then Parallels 7 may not have anymore then a speed bump for you. As far as using it, I have used it about a week and for the most part it does work OK. Its never going to run as fast as a native PC running Windows or even in BootCamp. If you really want to see what Windows can do on a Mac then use BootCamp. It is one reason Apple only really supports BootCamp. My cons about Parallels 7 are high CPU usage at times,slow downs when opening lots of browser tabs or programs. Needs 4GB ram to run well. Have to buy Parallels and a copy of Windows. So it gets kind of expensive. If you really need to go back and forth between the two operating systems. (Windows & OS X) then Parallels is a good choice. For better performance and saving a little bit of money try BootCamp first.
54 of 60 found the following review helpful:
VMWare Fusion users ... the time to switch is now!!!Sep 08, 2011
By Ron M I have been using VMWare Fusion almost since it was released, and have been generally happy with it. However, after a recent update my machines seem to have slowed down, and VMWare consumes a lot of CPU even when my virtual machines are idle. I decided to try Parallels 7, and I am SO GLAD that I did. It is way faster, way more polished, and easy to customize the way I like. I wish I would have switched years ago!!! Importing from my VMWare machines as as simple as pressing a button ... it was all automatic and worked perfectly for me. I like to run in "full screen" mode when I am using Windows, and Parallel's Lion support makes this much smoother (each machine in full screen mode gets its own "space" in OSX Lion).
Anyone who is using VMWare and who isn't totally happy with it should consider switching now!!!
p.s. VMWare Fusion users can get a copy for $29 from Parallel's web site ... do a google search to find the order page. You just need to enter your VMWare Fusion license to qualify.
15 of 16 found the following review helpful:
EssentialOct 20, 2011
By Mr. P. Howard It's difficult to admit that, although I'm an avid Mac user, I need access to Windows on a regular basis. Apps like Visual Studio and Beyond Compare are essential to my workflow, yet the rest of my time is spent doing things better suited to the Mac; chopping up graphics and working in PHP.
Parallels has been my saving grace almost from the moment Macs made the switch to Intel. I can remember being genuinely excited about the prospect of virtualising a Windows desktop on a Mac, and doing away with my clapped-out Windows computer forever. Have I looked back since? No.
Parallels works beautifully, integrating Windows so seamlessly with Mac OS that you'd be forgiven for thinking that there was no Windows running on your computer at all. You don't have to take it to that level, though, you can run Windows-in-a-window and compartmentalise. Parallels 7 introduces support with Lion's new window management features, meaning that it gets its own desktop in full-screen mode and you can easily hold down CTRL and use number or arrow keys to switch instantly between Windows and Lion.
As far as running Windows 7 is concerned, Parallels eats it for breakfast. Boot times stay fast, mainly because a virtualised windows is used less and thus is less prone to getting bogged down with random nonsense. And you can back up your whole virtual machine, for a quick and easy restore if Windows decides to implode.
Even running games is possible, right up to modern titles like Battlefield Bad Company 2, although not so well as you might want. Less recent games, such as those you might find on GOG.com, run beautifully, and Parallels really makes exploring those childhood classics possible.
23 of 27 found the following review helpful:
Sneaky pop-up adsJul 25, 2012
By Laser Beam I'm surprised that nobody has mentioned this, I'm a new user of Parallels 7 and I've been getting pop-up ads since install. Maybe this is a new "feature"?
This is an expensive piece of visualization software and I don't need it suggesting software trials for me to install on the VM host of all places, that surprised me more than if it wanted to put it on the guest.
I'll won't be purchasing products from Parallels ever again, should have bought Fusion.
25 of 30 found the following review helpful:
Best version so farSep 24, 2011
By Matt Eye
"Matthew"
Now the version 6 of Parallels worked very well on Snow Leopard and Lion (later found the 'shutdown problem' in Snow Leopard/Lion not a Parallels issue, even though the cause I couldn't find out). The only problem with version 6 was its somewhat laggy resume from suspension, but this has been improved in version 7, and Windows XP runs a little quicker too--whether startup and shutdown. Wow, shutdown is a bit faster now. The interface of Parallels takes on the Lion look, which I don't care for as much (why Apple didn't stick to the traditional blue candy cane look on scroll bars I am not exactly sure, but it may have something to do with iOS interface).
Five stars for performance (the best in this version yet), and the bugs that other reviewers have mentioned, I have not come across. My Mac Pro is exactly four years old now (yes, late September 2007). It does help having 10 GB of RAM, even though for my needs, Windows XP runs fine on 512 MB allocated (but then I don't have a lot installed, and no antivirus program, a common culprit for slowdown). Upon occasion (when starting the Virtual Machine), Parallels gives a message though, that you need 256 MB of video memory (NVIDIA) for 3D acceleration, but I just ignore this because I don't do gaming or other 3D work on Windows. If any other gripe is very minor, and previous versions didn't do this... When I minimize Parallels 7, and go to restore (left-click on the Dock), it likes to restore to 640 x 480, and then I simply click the green '+' sign to maximize it back to where it was before. I won't dock anything off (or 4.5 stars would be fair) because I find many other minor niggles (quirks) in Lion that irritate me mildly, more often.
Installation took a little time and went smoothly, but my bad (operator error) for having disabled Internet connection when installing Parallels Tools. It gave an error report message but I simply ignored and went to the menu to reinstall the tools. It has happened to me before (not the error screen but sometimes when an older version of the Virtual Machine were shutdown improperly). This was often due to the Finder not responding--Parallels had a tendency to cause unresponsive behavior, but I haven't yet seen this in version 7, so the bug must've been corrected--so far. Everything has worked fine at this time.
I recommend this version. Still have version 6 that I just upgraded to version 7 with the discount. Keep in mind that in order to receive updates from their site (I didn't buy Parallels 6 and 7 on Amazon), you should register. It takes a minute or two. It does, in some cases, give a popup, asking if you want to install Kapersky, but I don't care for this antivirus program, originally because I thought it caused Mac not to shutdown properly. I had tried running Malwarebytes' Antivirus or AVG Antivirus, but they didn't play nicely with Windows XP running on Parallels 6, and there were unwanted ads. AVG isn't free anymore, at least in the version I tried. I just don't go online with Parallels (as I use Firefox or Chrome on Mac, which is safer anyway), leaving the Internet connection (adapter) disabled, enabling it if necessary. As far as the offer to buy Parallels 7, I went ahead and did so, and have been glad since. Important note though, if I recall correctly, if you have version 4 (had many bugs and very slow performance in my trial use) or earlier, the upgrade key won't work for version 7. Good luck.
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based on 417 reviews
( 417 customer reviews )
