Why bother?
If you bought a Mac because you wanted a powerful, easy to use computer, it does all you need, and you like the Apple ecosystem then why complicate things by running Windows 10 – another operating system to learn, different software, etc.
If you have heard that Windows 10 is more Mac like – now is your chance to find out. Both operating systems have their strengths and very few weaknesses. Both will run Microsoft Office 365 so there are no more compatibility issues with Office for Mac and Office for Windows.
You may also have software that only runs on Windows but you might like the elegance of Mac design.
But remember that you are entering another ecosystem and like Apple, Microsoft will want to know who you are via a free Microsoft account.
Whatever you decide remember that Mac comes with OS X and has free lifetime updates and you will have to buy Windows 10 for the recommended price of A$179 for the standard version (Home) or $299 for the Pro version. It too has free lifetime updates.
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Boot Camp exposes the Mac’s Intel x86 heritage while keeping the Apple secret OS X sauce separate. It contains all the Windows 10 drivers needed for supported Macs.
To run the free Boot Camp to install Windows 10 you need:
- an approved Mac (list at the end of this article)
- A Windows 10, 64-bit Home or Pro ISO image (not the install downloadable DVD or USB). 32-bit is not supported
- An Apple or USB keyboard, mouse/trackpad
- A 16GB or larger USB drive that you can erase
- At least 30GB of free space on your start up drive
- And Boot Camp software to install Windows 10
If you have never used Windows before on a Mac you need to know that the only real obstacle is the keyboard mapping – OS X and Windows use different layouts.
Many of the function keys are re-mapped but you may want to read this article. Microsoft also has an article about using a Windows keyboard on a Mac here.
Boot Camp 6 includes support for the following features of your Mac in Windows 10.
- USB 3
- USB-C on the MacBook (Retina, 12-inch, Early 2015)
- Thunderbolt
- built-in SD or SDXC card slot
- built-in or USB Apple SuperDrive
- your Apple keyboard, trackpad, and mouse
You will need to have a valid authentication key – either your previous Windows 7/8.1 that you installed on the Mac or a new key that you bought online or from a retailer. An older 32-bit key will allow you to install the 64-bit version.
Boot Camp or Virtual Machine
Boot Camp allows you to use the Intel hardware as a Windows 10 PC so in theory it should be faster and more efficient. In other words, it is a dual boot – either OS X or Windows 10.
The other way to run Windows is as a virtual machine that runs Windows 10 inside an OS X environment – you can run both at the same time. iTWire has information of Parallels Desktop here.
