Boot camp vs parallels

Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
Does one of the two, Boot Camp, Parallels, work better than the other?

Is one more stable than the other?

Is one easier to install than the other?



If I am using a single windows program (streaming quotes on Fidelity) am I better off with one or the other?
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 49
    Quote:

    Originally posted by sammick

    Does one of the two, Boot Camp, Parallels, work better than the other?

    Is one more stable than the other?

    Is one easier to install than the other?



    If I am using a single windows program (streaming quotes on Fidelity) am I better off with one or the other?




    I'd say more stuff will work flawlessly with Boot Camp. Because Boot Camp is pretty much just using tested, manufacturer-provided Windows drivers for most of the hardware, while Parallels has to have some of its own driver environment going on, the Boot Camp way is more likely to work flawlessly.



    However, Parallels does work well by all accounts, it can be installed without repartitioning your drive, and it might just be more handy if you want those streaming quotes up while you're doing other things on your Mac. Give it a try and see how it works for you!



    -- Mark
  • Reply 2 of 49
    shetlineshetline Posts: 4,695member
    Boot Camp is going to give you the best PC performance, and I imagine for things like gaming, using Boot Camp help you take the greatest advantage of your video hardware.



    The biggest drawback of Boot Camp is that you're either running Windows, or you're running OS X. Switching from one to the other means rebooting.



    For a mere stock ticker, I'd easily say go with Parallels. I've been testing it out, and it's great. The performance is quite good. I haven't tested anything really demanding yet, but for what I've done and for what you have in mind, it's great, and even as a Beta product seems pretty solid so far.



    The best thing is with Parallels you don't have to give up running OS X at the same time.
  • Reply 3 of 49
    argeliusargelius Posts: 309member
    Can Parallels+Windows be installed on an external drive?



    I won't be using Windows much and am hoping to conserve drive space on my MacBook...
  • Reply 4 of 49
    glossgloss Posts: 506member
    Parallels itself doesn't take up much room, but I don't see why you wouldn't be able to store your Virtual Machine on another hard disk.
  • Reply 5 of 49
    nofeernofeer Posts: 2,427member
    can you run both on a firewire external??

    also is preordering this thing worth while or should i wait (i plan on getting a new mac this dec)
  • Reply 6 of 49
    greggwsmithgreggwsmith Posts: 523member
    The big question....Can I sync via bluetooth to my windows image in Parallels? I can do it with Boot Camp but hate having to reboot every hour or so going back and forth. I use windows for connecting to my company VPN since they don't play well with Mac. So therefore I pretty much do all my work stuff in Windows and my personal stuff in OS X. Work is mostly Outlook e-mail and basic office apps. What should I do?
  • Reply 7 of 49
    frykefryke Posts: 217member
    You should download RC2 of Parallels Workstation, install Windows in a virtual machine and try it out. What else _is_ there to do?
  • Reply 8 of 49
    sandausandau Posts: 1,230member
    my bluetooth mouse works fine in parallels but i'm not sure if that counts.
  • Reply 9 of 49
    Quote:

    Originally posted by NOFEER

    can you run both on a firewire external??

    also is preordering this thing worth while or should i wait (i plan on getting a new mac this dec)




    BootCamp only works off an internal drive. That's one area parallels has it beat.
  • Reply 10 of 49
    nofeernofeer Posts: 2,427member
    apple should buy parallels and incorporate it into next os, and have bootcamp as an option

    is the pre order worth it??? i don't want to buy something that has bunch of bugs yes you do save a bunch



    or maybe it's virtualization is so much superior to VPC that MS will buy it hmmmm they are threatened by apple now.
  • Reply 11 of 49
    giantgiant Posts: 6,041member
    sammick, for your needs, definitely parallels. It works very well. It's just as fast or faster than boot camp. If you leave it open full screen on a Desktop Manager or VirtueDesktop desktop, switching between operating systems is very quick and easy.
  • Reply 12 of 49
    jwink3101jwink3101 Posts: 739member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by NOFEER

    apple should buy parallels and incorporate it into next os, and have bootcamp as an option

    is the pre order worth it??? i don't want to buy something that has bunch of bugs yes you do save a bunch



    or maybe it's virtualization is so much superior to VPC that MS will buy it hmmmm they are threatened by apple now.






    Just to add, they should find a way to use the same windows install. So if i need windows quickly, i'll just boot up Parrells but if i will be there for a while, Boot Camp it is.
  • Reply 13 of 49
    nofeernofeer Posts: 2,427member
    Just to add, they should find a way to use the same windows install. So if i need windows quickly, i'll just boot up Parrells but if i will be there for a while, Boot Camp it is.







    why would it matter....enlighten me wouldn't you use one or the other. don't tell me you'd need 2 sets of windows to run both.
  • Reply 14 of 49
    jwink3101jwink3101 Posts: 739member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by NOFEER

    Just to add, they should find a way to use the same windows install. So if i need windows quickly, i'll just boot up Parrells but if i will be there for a while, Boot Camp it is.







    why would it matter....enlighten me wouldn't you use one or the other. don't tell me you'd need 2 sets of windows to run both.






    I mean that it will be the same install of windows. Generally, if i quickly need a file that i left on my XP system i can get it fast but if i need either a USB device to work or some intensive program, i can reboot
  • Reply 15 of 49
    nofeernofeer Posts: 2,427member
    shouldn't parallels handle the usb devices or is parallels limited?? i would use windows to use IE for work and maybe visioneer for a sheet fed scanner for paperwork scan to pdf format i'd figure i could just switch back and forth including the usb device. are you saying that parallels would not recognize the usb device unless i rebooted?? just plug it in with the windows screen open and active. maybe i don't understand virtualization?? i just want the best experience and transparent use. maybe now with new parallels we should be listing strengths and weaknesses for both, or when to use one over the other. maybe you need to load windows under bootcamp then load parallels.



    do you think boot camp will move to virtualization....because that' what consumers want (the explanation apple gave for developing boot camp in the first place).



    i'll probably get a new mac/s this winter so time will tell when how what's best for parallels or boot camp
  • Reply 16 of 49
    mr. hmr. h Posts: 4,870member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by NOFEER

    is parallels limited??



    The GPU is not virtualized, so I believe game and other graphics-intensive performance in parallels is much lower than in bootcamp.
  • Reply 17 of 49
    nofeernofeer Posts: 2,427member
    would a scanner be graphic intensive??
  • Reply 18 of 49
    chuckerchucker Posts: 5,089member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by NOFEER

    would a scanner be graphic intensive??



    No.
  • Reply 19 of 49
    nofeernofeer Posts: 2,427member
    now that you can get it as an official non beta app, someone try it out and tell me if its worth while stable, works and run through the paces. i don't have a macintel YET but maybe i can save some $$$ and get a copy now a suppose upgrades are included. i won't get a new mac till they upgrade the macbook pro chipset and especially will if this software works. do you feel sorry for MS and VPC??? i hope this kicks their ars
  • Reply 20 of 49
    parallels definitely kicks VPC's ass. and if you plan on getting a Mactel in the future, I'd suggest dropping $50 now for parallels instead of $80 (or more?) later. Get in while the getting is good, cause this product is solid, and the GA release is faster than all the betas combined.
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