Comments on: Parallels Desktop 5 vs. VMWare Fusion 3

By: Tim

Tim — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 08:16:39 +0000

Parallels 5 (newest download version) crashes my new dual 6 core MacPro running Snow Leopard 10.6.4 when I try to install it. I can only restart in “Safe” mode. This is total crap.There is NO TECH SUPPORT PHONE #. I will return the program to the Apple store and go back to Fusion.

By: Lisa Tolera

Lisa Tolera — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 00:50:33 +0000

BTW, another thing to consider: The Windows Experience Index numbers are are lot less on Parallels than on VMWare Fusion, with the exception of disk data transfer rate.

By: Lisa Tolera

Lisa Tolera — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 00:35:09 +0000

I’ve tried out both Parallels 5 and VMWare Fusion 3, and for me personally Parallels 5 is much better. It is a lot faster; I can use both SL and Windows 7 without noticeable hangs in either OS.

For me though, the killer feature of Parallels is that although Parallels gives Windows 7 1 GB of RAM to work with, Activity Monitor shows prl_vm_app as using only 568.7 MB (while Task Manager reports using 490 MB). With VMWare Fusion, the process takes up all the 1 GB it is given, whether or not the VM is actually using up that much RAM.

By: Joe

Joe — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 03:05:57 +0000

It turns out that VMware is quite more stable in terms of kernel extension implementation than Parallels. Your remarks to the stability are perfectly within reason and are the rule. I wish Parallels would get on the ball and stop being so hackish.

By: Don

Don — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 00:20:35 +0000

Thanks for the great info! I ran this question by Skeeter over at mac village, and would greatly appreciate your take.

Which VM would do best for a slower machine running productivity apps rather than games? I’m running the latest Macbook Air, which tops out at 2GHZ duo and 2GB Ram. I don’t plan on doing any graphics work besides basic maps (GIS) and Microsoft Office. I’d do boot camp, but the clunky file-sharing options with that seem prohibitive.

Any advice?

Don

By: WC

WC — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 05:17:21 +0000

Can you think of any reason why Fusion 2.06 stops showing apps in the dock? Or why everytime I try to run Fusion 3.0 it hangs while starting up? Or where one might actually get live tech support for Fusion?

By: Parallels 5 vs VMWare fusion 3 for the visual studio developper, compilation benchs | Everything and the Mobile Software Universe...

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 07:15:11 +0000

[...] has a good head to head fusion v3 vs Parallels 5 comparison also: He prefers VMWare for dev… I don’t due to the size of our projects, I’m [...]

By: Thomas

Thomas — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 14:27:30 +0000

For the Visual C++ dev, I’ve made some compilation bench between the 2 … conclusion is obvious:-) http://tmenguy.free.fr/TechBlog/?p=481

By: TwiRp

TwiRp — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:03:50 +0000

My issue with that is I can’t find an option to hide it when Parallels isn’t running.

By: TwiRp

TwiRp — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:03:19 +0000

I have an iMac (2.66 GHz, 4 GB ram) and the black macBook (2.16 GHz, 2 GB ram).

Parallels Desktop 5 is faster on boot and feels a lot smoother as it runs, but it does take up more background processes about 15% with Vista, while VMWare Fusion only takes about 5% with Vista. I don’t use the boot camp partition in either of them. I’ve never tried that start-up thing you’re talking about.

Parallels crashes on my when I use Aero and switch between the different view modes. It also crashes sometimes when sharing files. Fusion doesn’t crash as often. Changing view modes is fine (although Parallels does look nicer in my opinion), and if there’s a problem sharing a file, it just doesn’t load the file.

I’m not too picky about the clipboard, but I have noticed some limitations.