Parallels Desktop 6 (PD6) has been announced for the Mac, and offers performance gains over the previous version. Parallels provides virtual machine capability on the Mac designed to allow the installation and operation of alternate operating systems such as Windows. The developer claims that Windows boots 41 percent faster than before, and that intensive graphic applications show a similar performance boost.
The ability to run Mac and Windows programs side-by-side is useful for some folks, and PD6 is designed to make that experience very fluid. The Windows desktop in PD6 can be used in several ways: a resizable window, run in full-screen mode that toggles between Windows and OS X, or run in the Coherence mode which has Windows programs appearing on the Mac desktop like native apps. Professionals using Windows at work and OS X at home can access files and programs on the Mac once Parallels is installed. I made a video of the previous version of Parallels to demonstrate how well it makes Windows and OS X play together.
The new version will be available for purchase on Sept. 14(TODAY) for $79.99, with upgrade pricing of $49.99 for existing Parallels owners. Customers who have purchased the previous version recently may qualify for a free upgrade.
