Parallels has announced the release of Parallels 18 with improved support for the running Windows 11 on a Mac and better support for Apple Silicon M1/M2 chips.
Parallels 18 also improves support for ProMotion Displays in the latest M1 Macs and external displays such as the Apple Studio Display and Apple Pro XDR.
Parallels has long been the best way to run Windows on a Mac and Parallels 18 has improved support for the latest generation of Apple Silicon Macs such as the M1 MacBook Pro and Mac Studio.
Support for the fastest M1 Ultra chip in the Mac Studio means that Parallels claims it now runs Windows 11 98% faster than previously since it harnesses the full power of the M1 Ultra chip.
Support for Windows 11 has also been improved with an easier installation process on M1 Macs and support for game controllers in Windows 11 on a Mac.
Playing games on Windows 11 in Parallels has also been improved thanks to support for higher frame rates for fast moving games.
Finally, Parallels 18 is already macOS Ventura ready which will be released publicly this Fall to all Mac users.
Pricing for Parallels has been increased slightly with the release of Parallels 18.
The Standard Edition of Parallels 18 for Mac is $99.99 per year or $129.99 for a one-time perpetual license.
Students are eligible for a discounted price of $49.99 per year.
For power users, the Parallels Pro Edition is $119.99 per year and the Parallels Business Edition is $149.99 per year.
You can also download a free trial of Parallels 18 to test it for yourself.
I upgraded to 18 pro on my M1 Max. The first thing I noticed was Windows 11 would go black on my. I could not get the screen to reappear. After I couple of tries I came up with a solution
Uninstall Parallel Tools when you do the upgrade. After the upgrade is finished, re-install Parallels Tools.
Windows 11 black screen from Parallels upgrade.
I was already running the previous version of Parallels, with a subscription. The Parallels 18 ‘blurb’ led me to believe that I had to buy a new subscription for P18. I paid for a year and downloaded and installed the software and it runs OK, but at the end of the install it said I should check my account. When I did this, it appears to tell me that I could have had a free upgrade from the previous version. It also tells me that I now have two subscriptions for two computers.
Should I argue this out with Cleverbridge and try for a refund? I do have an older Mac Mini which is already bootcamped for Windows 10. I wonder if it might be better to de-bootcamp it and install the older Parallels version I have a subscription for and forget about the refund?
Unless you specifically need Boot Camp to run certain games on your Mac Mini, then you might as well use the other subscription to install Parallels on it. In really all depends on what you use Windows on the Mac Mini for.