We all know how great it is to work on a Mac, but we also know that far too many businesses are mired in Windows-only software, meaning if you want to work at home, you need to be on Windows, too. Or, you have that occasionally used home PC and there are files and apps you would like to run on your new Mac instead.
Sure, you could dual-boot your Mac using Boot Camp, but that’s awfully inconvenient if you just need to run a quick check of a file or two, or log into a particular server at work.
Using Parallels, you can run a version of Windows (or any of several other OS variants) in a “virtual machine” right on your Mac, without having to reboot. You can run that Windows-only corporate software alongside Safari, iCal, Mail and all your other favorite Mac software.
The only downside to this is that you’re still running a version of Windows in this virtual machine, and it’s still subject to all the malware, instabilities and maintenance issues that plague Windows. While this kind of infection would be limited to the virtual machine and unlikely to affect your Mac, it’s still something you want to avoid. Plus, with all the software and files you may already have on your Windows machine, transferring everything over can be a daunting task.
This is where OWC comes into the picture.
We’ve got Parallels 5 “Switch to Mac” Edition, which not only has tools (software, a USB transfer cable, and even “Getting Started on Mac” videos) to help bring over files and programs from your PC to your Mac, but it also includes over $175 worth of maintenance software for your virtual machine:
- Parallels Internet Security by Kaspersky protects against virus and spyware threats, plus firewall and anti-spam. A $79.99 value.
- Acronis TrueImage Home backup and recovery software for Windows. A $49.99 value.
- Acronis Disk Director Suite disk partitioning software for Windows. A $49.95 value.
With a price tag of $35, it’s right around half the price of Parallels 6, which doesn’t come with the bundled convenience extras.
For more advanced users, who already have similar software for their machines and don’t want/need the extra data transfer tools, we also have the “regular” version of Parallels 5 for the breakthrough price of $25.
While Parallels 5 isn’t the latest version, it’s easily the best value if you’re converting over from a Windows box—especially when you factor in the OWC-exclusive “upgrade” offer in the works that will get you to Parallels 6 (and quite possibly later versions) at a ridiculously low price!
Look for that announcement in a few days…but in the meantime, you better get on one of these “best ever” deals because it’s “while supplies last”!
