This version of Parallels Desktop uses 250% less power on a Mac with an Apple M1 compared to an Intel-based MacBook Air
Parallels have released an update to its Desktop software that allows Apple M1-based Mac owners to install Windows 10 for Arm processors (Windows 10 on Arm). Parallels Desktop 16.5 now includes the necessary built-in support to run Arm Windows on Apple M1s following Apple’s decision not to support Boot Camp on Macs with Apple M1s.
Windows 10 on Arm now works on Macs with Apple M1
The latest version of Parallels Desktop for Mac allows Mac owners with an Apple M1 to run Windows 10 on Arm apps as well as traditional x86 apps concurrently with Mac or iOS apps on Big Sur. Windows 10 on Arm will have some app limitations thanks to native app-emulation, but Windows 10 on Arm will soon support x64 app emulation as well.
The manufacturer says the latest update also resulted in some impressive performance and battery savings overrunning the software on Intel-based Macs. This version uses 250% less power on a Mac with an Apple M1 compared to an Intel-based MacBook Air. It also promises to increase DirectX 11 performance by 60% and increase overall virtual machine performance by up to 30%.
The main drawback is that you need to run Windows Preview The software manufacturer provides a Windows 10 on Arm preview build that can be downloaded from the Microsoft Windows Insider website.
In addition to supporting Windows 10 on Arm, Parallels Desktop 16.5 for Mac also supports Linux distributions such as Ubuntu 20.04, Kali Linux 2021.1, Debian 10.7, and Fedora Workstation 33-1.2.
