Just HOW GOOD is the MacBook Pro at running Windows 7?

[liljoedaprince]

Be warned. Such features such as inertial tracking of the ability to hold down shift when changing the volume to keep it quiet, or overall greatness of the trackpad, or coolness and long battery life, will disappear


By the way, if you use tap to click, it, by default, will be hard to find. You have to go to the Bootcamp System preferences (in Windows btw) and activate it

 

[nihao1234]

Aaargh! Reading some of the horror stories with driver updates, freezing, incompatibility, etc. are making me rethink whether I should go Mac for another 4 years. Is this just a vocal minority of people complaining of Windows 7 freezing on MBP's and should I disregard it? Or is it truly a bad idea?!

The idea that one poster suggested, that "it depends on whether you get a good macbook or not" scares the heck out of me-if I'm paying THAT much, it better work!

any more advice? thanks a bunch for all the information you guys are giving!

 

[mikeo007]

Some of the problems are definitely legit. Driver issues are real, so are battery and heat issues. The freezing thing I can't comment on, since all computers freeze at times. If you're going to use only windows on your macbook, you would be better getting a dedicated windows machine. Running windows on a mac is more of a luxury than anything else.

 

[heliuscc]

Let's be fair, why do you want a mac if you're going to run windows all the time?
Buy a nice windows laptop and save the money, you'll need it in the future...

 

[Sandford]

Running windows on a mac is more of a luxury than anything else.

From Apple's website: "It runs Windows, too.
Have a Windows application you need to use once in a while? No problem. Every new Mac lets you install Windows XP and Vista and run them at native speeds, using a built-in utility called Boot Camp."

I shouldn't have troubles in running Windows if they sell a machine that CAN run Windows.
They sell a product that can run OS X AND Windows.
It can't be a luxury!
That would be deceptive advertising!!!
Please don't justify every Apple's fault just because you own a product made by them!

 

[heliuscc]

My MBP arrived 20 may and hasn't left the spot where it landed. Should I return it and buy a 27" Imac?

 

[mikeo007]

From Apple's website: "It runs Windows, too.
Have a Windows application you need to use once in a while? No problem. Every new Mac lets you install Windows XP and Vista and run them at native speeds, using a built-in utility called Boot Camp."

I shouldn't have troubles in running Windows if they sell a machine that CAN run Windows.
They sell a product that can run OS X AND Windows.
It can't be a luxury!
That would be deceptive advertising!!!
Please don't justify every Apple's fault just because you own a product made by them!

I'm stating the fact that macs don't run windows as well as they claim, so I don't see how I'm "justify every Apple's fault" as you claim.

Besides that, I don't own any apple products at all champ.

 

[Sefk]

While I love OS X, I know that many computer applications in college still require Windows, and for some reason I just prefer word processing within the Windows environment (it's just preference, really).Thanks!!

1: in many fields (like math), some of the best softwares do not run very well on windows and requires a unix-like system (linux, os x, solaris...)
2: What is the point of having OS X on a machine, if everything that you want to do has to be done in Windows?

From Apple's website: "It runs Windows, too.
Have a Windows application you need to use once in a while? No problem. Every new Mac lets you install Windows XP and Vista and run them at native speeds, using a built-in utility called Boot Camp."

I shouldn't have troubles in running Windows if they sell a machine that CAN run Windows.
They sell a product that can run OS X AND Windows.
It can't be a luxury!
That would be deceptive advertising!!!

Deceptive advertising....???
Can do something is not equal to can to something perfectly. They said that Windows runs on mac, cool, but they didn't say that windows run without problems on mac.

 

[Sandford]

Deceptive advertising....???
Can do something is not equal to can to something perfectly. They said that Windows runs on mac, cool, but they didn't say that windows run without problems on mac.

This is just what I meant when I said "Please don't justify every Apple's fault just because you own a product made by them!"

 

[gwsat]

I have never understood why anyone would want to run Windows in a Bootcamp partition. If you do that, Windows is an alternative to OS X, not an adjunct, because you have to shutdown OS X and boot Windows in the Bootcamp partition before you can use it. I use VMware Fusion in Unity mode instead of Bootcamp to run Windows apps. That way, Windows apps open from the OS X desktop just like native OS X apps do. Better yet, the Windows apps accept most of the familiar keyboard shortcuts that we use in OS X. The only downside to this solution I have seen is that Fusion in Unity mode requires a lot of memory to work well.

 

[mikeo007]

I have never understood why anyone would want to run Windows in a Bootcamp partition. If you do that, Windows is an alternative to OS X, not an adjunct, because you have to shutdown OS X and boot Windows in the Bootcamp partition before you can use it. I use VMware Fusion in Unity mode instead of Bootcamp to run Windows apps. That way, Windows apps open from the OS X desktop just like native OS X apps do. Better yet, the Windows apps accept most of the familiar keyboard shortcuts that we use in OS X. The only downside to this solution I have seen is that Fusion in Unity mode requires a lot of memory to work well.

There are some programs that require windows to be running natively, hence they will not work with virtualization.

There's also people who prefer windows 7 to OSX, but are stuck using a mac for some reason. Running windows natively may be the best option for them as well.

 

[dsprimal]

only thing i see useful for bootcamp is for games. running windows and playing games through parallels or any other fusion is horrible. so if your not gaming, i see no reason to use windows through bootcamp.

 

[Bosmonster]

For some high performance applications (like games) booting natively is a lot better.

Luckily you can run a Bootcamp partition in VMware, so you get best of both worlds.

 

[gwsat]

There are some programs that require windows to be running natively, hence they will not work with virtualization.

There's also people who prefer windows 7 to OSX, but are stuck using a mac for some reason. Running windows natively may be the best option for them as well.

That's a good point. Fortunately, none of the Windows apps I run are graphics intensive, so they do just fine in virtualization.

 

[Fuzz02]

I'm a big fan of OS X, but the fact is there are some programs that run better in Windows, namely games. Surely there are other examples too, like Microsoft Office (I find it appalling on Mac OS X as well as Windows, but what can you do), or other "work" programs, however I'm mostly familiar with video games.

In my opinion, suggesting people to just abandon their macs and buy a windows machine is ridiculous. I bought a mac because I VERY much prefer the OS X environment. I absolutely hate using Windows. If I have to I will, but it is not nearly as intuitive and pleasant for me as using my Macbook.

Having both operating systems on the same computer is convenient, and I switch back and forth in around a minute or two. If that's too much of an inconvenience for you, then that's your issue.

On the issue of compatibility and performance..

I'm on a 1st Gen 2006 Macbook with Leopard installed. Windows 7 runs amazingly on it. Fact of the matter is, Windows crashes. A lot. When Apple users, who are accustomed to RARELY ever getting crashes, first start using Windows and notice even a couple crashes they start pointing fingers and making bold claims.

Compared to other computers I've used, running Windows 7 on my Macbook has been a wonderful experience. Don't get me wrong, I very much prefer OS X, however, compared to other Windows computers, I'm not plagued with constant crashes, slow down, or driver errors when running off my Macbook.

Of course, drivers can be a factor explaining the amount of naysayers. Perhaps I have lucked out and Apple has made great drivers for my specific Macbook (perhaps because it is a simpler computer?); I just want to point out that even older machines can run it very well. It isn't an issue with "age" or "specs," it may just be an issue with drivers or misconceptions of how well Windows runs in the first place.

Anyway, I'm off to play Oblivion on my macbook!

 

[copland007]

I installed Win7 Ultimate 64-bit on my MBP 15" i5 with no issues. It took a little bit to find the settings for the trackpad, but other than that all my device drivers worked just fine right out of the gate. I connect to a Dell ultrasharp 2001 monitor that has a usb hub with some other devices (external hd, etc) that all work. The only hiccup I haven't figured out in that setup is I can't setup my external monitor to extend my desktop to the left of my MBP monitor, it seems to only want to extend to the right.

I do Sony Vegas 64-bit video editing in my bootcamp'ed Win7, that's pretty much it. Everything else I use OSX.

I've only been running this setup for about a week but I am about 85% happy with the process.

The cons I have noticed...

Screen brightness on the MBP under windows seems to default back to the highest setting in the bootcamp control panel after a reboot, and it doesn't seem to use the light sensor to dim it automatically. Both those add to eating the battery faster.

Missing keys are a little annoying (ins/del/home/end) but I can live without them.

When using the bluetooth magic mouse the right click is much more sensitive in win7, I have to make sure I don't have any other contact with the top of the mouse when I go to click on the right side, otherwise it just does a left click. Again only a minor annoyance IMO.

I haven't done a battery drain comparison since I'm usually only using Win7/Vegas when I'm plugged in.

Performance I would say is right on par with a comparable PC laptop. You have to compare apples to apples here (no pun intended really I have a desktop PC that is pretty close spec wise, the only difference is I have installed Win7 Professional 32-bit on it. Both my desktop PC and my MBP w/bootcamp run pretty similar performance, the scale tips a little to the MBP but I have to contribute that to the higher specs. I also have a thinkpad t61p running WinXP but that's not really comparing apples to apples so of course the MBP is much faster.

In my honest opinion if you want to run Win7 as your primary OS most of the time it seems a little bit expensive to opt for an apple device as your hardware platform of choice (laptop or desktop).

edit: you can always dual boot/virtualize OSX on your PC but that is soo much more of a headache it isn't even funny. i.e. My desktop PC is tri-booted for WinXP, Win7, OSX (not vanilla). Booting the desktop PC in OSX native is a huge undertaking and not recommended for the faint of heart. My thinkpad T61p I dual-boot WinXP and OSX. I also have vmware under WinXP running OSX SL vanilla.

moral of the story... getting a pc to run mac osx is possible, but is an absolute joke compared to bootcamp.

 

[Sandford]

Fact of the matter is, Windows crashes. A lot.

Windows 7 doesn't crash anymore. If we are talking about Vista or XP then ok, but 7 is really rock solid.
The problem is related to drivers that make Windows crash (we all know the nature of the interaction among drivers and an OS meant to be run on a big variety of different hardware (aka Windows)).

ATi didn't make good quality drivers for its graphics cards in the past. Now their drivers are very good and the stability of the system is increased, and the graphics performances are awesome.

In the same manner Apple isn't making out good quality drivers for their hardware, and so the stability and the performances of a Windows OS running on this hardware is compromised!

 

[dsprimal]

does "windows runs better on a mac" still hold any water?

 

[Fuzz02]

Windows 7 doesn't crash anymore. If we are talking about Vista or XP then ok, but 7 is really rock solid.

While Windows 7 is several times more stable than other versions, I wouldn't say that they've completely eliminated crashing. It isn't nearly as frequent, but it's still there and it's still more often than I've experienced crashes in OS X. Although, I suppose the nature of the programs being used is a factor as well.

To clarify, I don't mean crashes as in "crap it froze, need to restart," I mean crashes that need the task manager to fix, like a program that doesn't close all the way or goes back to desktop and the like.

I've experienced this on several computers, including a brand new HP laptop a couple months ago running Windows 7.

 

[Sandford]

To clarify, I don't mean crashes as in "crap it froze, need to restart," I mean crashes that need the task manager to fix, like a program that doesn't close all the way or goes back to desktop and the like.

Ahhh! Ok then! I misunderstood. Yes that kind of crashing is still present, but I noticed it is always related to the application that's running.

Anyway in this thread a lot of people is talking about bad performances, which I don't think to be related to occasional apps crashing..

 

[Fuzz02]

Ah, well, I factor crashing in to the overall category of performance, and I just wanted to clarify things like that aren't a sign of mac hardware being subpar or unable to run things.

I don't know what kind of scale we're using to rate the performance of the OS on a mac, but I will say I can play Oblivion at a decent (30+) on my nearly 5 year old macbook (at low settings and with a few mods, but still)

 

[spaceballl]

I want to mention that I'm using an i7 MacBook Pro to virtualize both Ubuntu and Windows 7. Yesterday VMWare Fusion came out with the 3.1 update, and everyone should know that it made HUGE performance increases. Not only are apps way more responsive, but the animations are like butter now. They used to be quite jerky. So this is a big improvement. VMWare owners should all upgrade to the new version. Not sure how Parallels compares (they had a major update too).

 

[bigdaddyc188]

Does anyone have experience running Visual Studio under bootcamp?

 

[chinhiphone]

i justs got win7 ulti 64bit on my i7.. using parallels 5.. it runs very well and stable but when i change to coherence mode.. winamp got a lil choppy.. not entirely sure what is happening

had my ram at 2gb and cores set at 2

 

[mark28]

1: in many fields (like math), some of the best softwares do not run very well on windows and requires a unix-like system (linux, os x, solaris...)
2: What is the point of having OS X on a machine, if everything that you want to do has to be done in Windows?


Deceptive advertising....???
Can do something is not equal to can to something perfectly. They said that Windows runs on mac, cool, but they didn't say that windows run without problems on mac.

What math software does not run well on Windows and requires a unix-like system?