Entered CNET Catalog: 04/05/2006
SKU: CNETAPPLEBOOTCAMPBETA
Manufacturer: Apple Inc.
Manufacturer description
More and more people are buying and loving Macs. To make this choice simply irresistible, Apple will include technology in the next major release of Mac OS X, Leopard, that lets you install and run the Windows XP operating system on your Mac. Called Boot Camp (for now), you can download a public beta today. Boot Camp lets you install Windows XP without moving your Mac data, though you will need to bring your own copy to the table, as Apple Computer does not sell or support Microsoft Windows. Boot Camp will burn a CD of all the required drivers for Windows so you don't have to scrounge around the Internet looking for them. Once you've completed Boot Camp, simply hold down the option key at startup to choose between Mac OS X and Windows. (That's the "alt" key for you longtime Windows users.) After starting up, your Mac runs Windows completely natively. Simply restart to come back to Mac.Editors' review
- Editors' Choice: No
- Reviewed on: 04/05/2006
Apple released Boot Camp today, a free download that lets you run Windows on an Intel-based Mac. The 83MB download is available as beta software, and Boot Camp will be included in Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard later this year. We don't, however, expect to see Windows preinstalled on Macs anytime soon (Apple makes it very clear it will not support Windows). Interest in running Windows on a Mac has been evident ever since Steve Jobs announced the Intel-based iMac this past January, and it reached a crescendo last month with various contests for finding a hack to run Windows on an Intel Mac. Boot Camp, therefore, isn't the first time the world will see Windows running on a Mac, but it certainly makes the process much easier.
We installed Boot Camp on the iMac Core Duo; the software will also work with the Mac Mini and the MacBook Pro. Before we could run the app, we first had to update our iMac to Mac OS X 10.4.6, followed by a quick firmware update. We were then prompted to burn a disc of Windows drivers (for the iMac Core Duo's video and audio adapters, peripherals, wired and wireless networking adapters, and so on), which are included in the Boot Camp download. After ejecting our newly minted driver disc, Boot Camp then asked us how we'd like to partition our iMac's 250GB hard drive. The default was a paltry 5GB for Windows; we upped it to an even 100GB, then inserted a Windows XP Pro with Service Pack 2 disc. Note: You must supply your own copy of Windows; you can use either Home or Pro, but Apple's documentation states that it must include SP2. The Windows installation proceeded per its norm, the iMac restarted, and we were looking at the strange site of the glossy white iMac framing the familiar XP Bliss wallpaper. It's alive!
A quick scan of the Device Manager showed that we were a few drivers short of a full deck. We installed the contents of the driver disc that Boot Camp had us create, which filled in most, but not all, of the gaps. We were still missing a USB driver and a PCI driver, along with some unknowns. From our first pass with Windows on the iMac, however, the system appeared to be fully operational. We were able to connect to our LAN and the Internet, and even play a game of Minesweeper.
What Boot Camp doesn't let you do is run both operating systems at the same time. You must shut down one before booting to the other. Whichever OS you had running last will boot upon the next start-up. To halt that from happening, simply hold down the Alt-Option key while the system powers on, and after a few seconds, you'll be presented with a gray start screen with two images of hard drives: choose the one of the left for Mac OS or the one on the right for Windows.
Boot Camp also installs an icon labeled Startup Disk in the Control Panel in Windows and in the System Preferences window in Mac OS. It opens a window that lists the Mac OS and Windows XP partitions. Choose one to shut down the current OS you have running and boot to the other. Switching between the two operating systems was fast and easy. Also, Windows appeared to be stable; it crashed only once when we were investigating DirectX settings, not an unusual occurrence on any Windows-based PC.
There's more to this than playing Minesweeper on a Mac, of course. Aside from the wow factor, Boot Camp, especially when it becomes a standard feature of the Mac OS, should usher in a new era for the Mac platform. Though you'll need to pony up for a copy of Windows, your Mac will be able to run any software that its PC competitors can run, not too mention all the Apple apps that PCs can't run. With Boot Camp, for example, you can run the iLife apps and the latest 3D game, say, F.E.A.R., on the same system.
As surprising as the Boot Camp development might be, the performance results are decidedly boring. Given the Intel processor and motherboard, the iMac Core Duo's performance when running Windows was right about where we expected compared to other Windows PCs'. On CNET Labs' Photoshop CS test, it trailed dual-core PCs from HP, but only by a small percentage. We didn't expect it to top either of these systems, given their more powerful Pentium D 900-series desktop processors. Compared to the same iMac Core Duo system running Mac OS X, the system showed a large but not unexpected jump in performance with Photoshop. Where the iMac Core Duo in Mac OS X took 6.5 minutes to complete the test, because it must use the Rosetta translation software, the same system running Windows XP Pro took less than 3 minutes.
(Lower times are better)
We're also not shocked by the iTunes, video-encoding, and Doom 3 tests. As it was written with the Mac OS X in mind, iTunes has historically run slower on Windows PCs. The same holds true for the iMac hardware running Windows: the Windows partition on the iMac took 26 seconds longer to finish our test. Our Sorenson video-encoding test looks much better on the Windows partition than on the OS X side for the same reason the Photoshop results skewed in favor of Windows: Sorenson runs natively in Windows XP and is emulated via Rosetta in OS X.
(Lower times are better)
(Lower times are better)
The release of Boot Camp doesn't change our opinion of the iMac as a gaming system. No matter which OS you run, its weak ATI Radeon X1600 graphics chip, which shares memory with the system itself, isn't going to deliver high frame rates. The iMac Core Duo performed better under Windows than under OS X (25.9 frames per second vs. an even less playable 16.2), but we still don't recommend it for serious 3D gaming.
 |
Doom 3 1,024x768 4XAA 8XAF |
Finally, on our SysMark 2004 test, the iMac Core Duo shows that when running Windows XP, it can hold its own against any other standard Windows desktop on common productivity apps. The Dell XPS 400 wins on the SysMark 2004 Overall test, largely due to its faster Pentium D 940 processor. The iMac running Windows, though, takes out HP's newest Media Center PC, 214 to 200 on the Overall test. In short, anything Dell or HP can do, an Apple iMac Core Duo can do almost as well, if not better.
(Longer bars indicate better performance)
|
SysMark 2004 Overall | |
SysMark 2004 Internet Content Creation | |
SysMark 2004 Office Productivity |
System configurations:
Apple
iMac Core Duo (Mac OS X)
Macintosh OS 10.4.4; 2.0GHz Intel Core Duo; 1GB DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz; 128MB
ATI Radeon X1600 PCIe; 250GB Maxtor 7,200rpm Serial ATA hard drive
Apple
Apple iMac Core Duo (Windows XP Pro)
Windows XP Pro SP2; 2.0GHz Intel Core Duo; 1GB DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz; 128MB ATI
Radeon X1600 PCIe; 250GB Maxtor 7,200rpm Serial ATA hard drive
Apple
iMac G5 2.10GHz
Macintosh OS 10.4; PowerPC G5 2.10GHz; 512MB DDR2 SDRAM 533MHz; 128MB ATI
Radeon X600XT PCIe; 250GB Serial ATA hard drive
Dell
XPS 400 (Viiv)
Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005; 3.2GHz Intel Pentium D 940; Intel
945P chipset; 1,024MB DDR SDRAM 533MHz; 256MB Nvidia GeForce 6800 (PCIe);
two Maxtor 250GB 7,200rpm Serial ATA; integrated Intel (RAID 1)
HP
Pavilion Media Center TV m7360n
Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005; 2.8GHz Intel Pentium D 920; Intel
945G chipset; 2,048MB DDR2 SDRAM 533MHz; 256MB Nvidia GeForce 6200 SE
(PCIe); Maxtor 300GB 7,200rpm Serial ATA
User opinions
Select a User Opinion to view: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22out of 21 user reviews
Why Mac OS
Pros: Thanks to BootCamp
Cons: BootCamp vs Mac OS
out of 21 user reviews
Feels like the real thing!
Pros: You can run Mac and Windows on the same computer, easy to install, simple to use, supports heavy graphics
Cons: You have to reboot everytime you want to go to the Windows or Mac partition.
out of 21 user reviews
Mixed feelings
Pros: Runs programs I already have for windows (wont purchase twice!)
Cons: IE7 crashes, Cant load the 2nd disk for WMC 2005
out of 21 user reviews
keeps everyone happy....
Pros: Free, works almost flawlessly, runs XP super-fast
Cons: Previous few, lack of official bluetooth support
With the myriad opportunities for various aspects of the system not to work, I really only encountered one stupid little issue. Bluetooth isn't officially supported in Boot Camp, so I have to re-enable the wireless keyboard every time windows boots ( i.e. - power it off, then on again, and use the BT interface to enable it). Seriously, this was the ONLY issue that I came across. Annoying? Yes. But still amazing? You bet.
out of 21 user reviews
Awesome App.
Pros: I Should be able to run windows .exe files
Cons: My iMac Is Too old For OS X! :(
out of 21 user reviews
Macs are now the only computer you'll need
Pros: Fully native Windows Performance on the great Mac hardware, it's the only computer you need
Cons: This still does require the purchase of Windows and a reboot which most Mac users aren't usually used to
-aaronramshaw@gmail.com-
out of 21 user reviews
I have a few questions to those who have used it
Pros: Dual (Tri?) boot possible
Cons: Viruses, loyal mac users buying XP?
out of 21 user reviews
Quite interesting
Pros: Versatility
Cons: Windows Viruses on Macs... hope not
out of 21 user reviews
Mac OS X "Leopard"
Pros: ----------------------
Cons: ----------------------
out of 21 user reviews
Now lets reverse it.
Pros: None to mention
Cons: None to mention
out of 21 user reviews
Interesting Product, double edeged:P
Pros: Mac users will have no compatibily issues
Cons: lack of drivers maybe...mac users may end up using just windows xp to avoid changing os
I say this is double edge, because it can help and harm apple. A widnows user who likes the looks of a mac will buy it like if he was buying a sony vaio. But lets say a Mac user have this bussines software of great importance for his job which runs only on windows. He installs windows xp, instead of changing os evertime he wants to do something else he will begin to use windows. Only time will tell which will be the results.
P.S. yeah i know mac users say the real reason for getting a mac is the OS, but windows is not that bad as people say.
I use mac at school, personally i do not like them, office runs wierd and extending the windows may end up under the functions of word which is anoying.
out of 21 user reviews
Benchmarks aren't the only story
Pros: 2 Operating systems on 1 piece of hardware
Cons: Slower than optimum performance....
out of 21 user reviews
Why would any Mac user even want Windows?
Pros: Might help some cross platform folks get familiar with the higher quality of Mac hardware and ease of use.
Cons: Will this bring the Windows viruses and snafu's to the Mac?
out of 21 user reviews
What's not to love
Pros: Ability to run either platform's software
Cons: None that I can think of
I only gave it a 9 out of 10 because nothing is perfect, and I might be missing something, but I'll be damned if I can see any negatives to this deal. If you are a Mac fan it's great news, if you are a Wintel fan then you are no worse off than you were before.
out of 21 user reviews
Awesome....Thanks Apple!!!
Pros: Runs Windows natively, easy installation, FAST!!!
Cons: lack of some drivers
But wouln't it be great if Apple can figure out a way to run Windows apps in a MAC without having to install Windows???
out of 21 user reviews
Kia And Mercedes
Pros: run everything all my games on windows every thing else in windows
Cons: windows still susceptible to viruses and spyware
compairing dell, hp, even sony against apple is like compairing (Kia) against (mercedes)
with Kia they say they have all the fetures of the merecedes but that is not true when you look at it you get more fetures with merecedes
Dell, Hp say they have all the fetures but you end up paying extra for bluetooth video camera and cant even get a backlight keyboard
Kia does not have quality so you end up replaceing it every few years and the cars are just copied styles with mercedes you get a much better looking car and it last forever it also looks a lot cooler
Hp, Dell they dont necesarily copy styles but the computer is made out of cheap materials so like the kia you have to replace it every few years APPLE like the mercedes is a much nicer looking machine all the features are standerd and it last forever
for a second lets take two other car companies and compare some different stuff
lets take the mitsubhsi eclipse and the Acura Tsx
with the mitsubhisi you can get all the acsessories but a not very reliable car that hs tons of problems with the acura you have a nice looking car that lst forever and doosent need work very much but not many acsessories
so something meraculis happens and the eclipse and tsx
become one car you get the featurees of both but when your using it you can choose only one or the other to use
but when in the eclipse you still get its problems
like with the new apple boot camp you can use the great software for mac like imovie hd idvd and iphoto and microsoft word as well as internet and the games with windows
so in the end what would you want something that does everything in a sleek package or somthing that does some things
I hear every body say macs are so expensive, I cant get one so the hate it
because they can’t get it.
Comparing dell, hp, even Sony against apple is like comparing (Kia Amantie)
against (Mercedes S class(2007))
With Kia’s they say they have all the features of the Mercedes, but that is not
true when you look at it you get more features with Mercedes.
Dell and Hp say they have all the features but you end up paying extra for
Bluetooth video camera and can’t even get a backlit keyboard.
Kia does not have very quality, so you end up replacing it every few years,
plus you end up taking a lot of trips to the repair shop and the cars are just
copied styles, with Mercedes you get a much nicer looking car and it last
forever it also looks a lot nicer.
Hp, Dell they don’t necessarily copy styles, but the computer is made out of
cheap materials, so like the Kia you have to replace it every few years APPLE
like the Mercedes is a much nicer looking machine all the features are
standard and it last forever
For a minute lets take two other car’s and compare some different things.
Lets take the Mitsubishi eclipse and the Acura RL
(this part may seem a bit repetitive at first but bear with me there is a point to
this part)
With the Mitsubishi you can get all the accessories but a not very reliable car.
With the Acura you have a nice looking car that last forever and doesn’t need
work very much but not many accessories but the ones they have are really
good
So something miraculous happens, and the RL gets all of the Mitsubishis
accessories, but (there’s always a but) when you use them they have the same
problems they did with the eclipse.
Like with the new apple boot camp you can use the great software for Mac
like iMovie Hd iDvd and iphoto and Microsoft word as well as internet
(without viruses).
And you use games or software that you are required to use that dose not
have an OSX counterpart on the windows part of it (God forbid you have to
get on the internet part of windows)
So in the end what would you want something that does, and has everything
standard in a sleek package for not much more that also last longer, or
something that gets viruses and dosn’t last very long as well as having
physical problems
out of 21 user reviews
Revolutionary - Great Performance - Visionary
Pros: Versatile and Sleek - Runs as good as or better than on PC
Cons: So far - no real bridge between the two platforms within the system
out of 21 user reviews
Wow one of the who gave an opinion is so smart
Pros: Versatility for Mac users, Windows users itching to try a mac but fear they may regret it now have the chance
Cons: none at the moment
Please don't mind the post made by one person. He obviously does not know anything of the subject matter. Hope you're reading this
out of 21 user reviews
I can't wait to see the photoshop benchmarks with universal binary on the mactels
Pros: Windows and Mac all ine one
Cons: some driver issues
Apple will raise its marketshare a lot once people realize this product.
out of 21 user reviews
shame on you reviewer!!
Pros: extrmemely sensible to carry a single powerful laptop on business trips while having fun in the Hotels....
Cons: this reviewer needs to state facts - as much I love the option mentioned in the pros above I would hate to see such biased reviews - com'n guys - you dont work for Apple do you?
Especially in a Photoshop test - its the GPU that makes the difference than anything else. Shame on you!!
Can anyone care to explain what happens if I Hibernate my m/c in Windows and when bringing it up I boot to OS/X and change one of the files being edited in the current Windows session (that was hibernated) using OS/X (assuming the shared file is on FAT 32) and then shut down OS/X to boot to Windows??
out of 21 user reviews
Really Neat!
Pros: Apple Design with Windows software
Cons: Must restart to switch back and forth
I played Call of Duty and had very little problems. There were some glitches (my brothers in arms would just stand still during some stretches of game), yet the game still played very well. I installed some applications (Trillian and Norton Anti-Virus) and everything worked so seamlessly. It simply felt like I was using a windows computer.
One thing to note, as mentioned in the article, is the lack of some key drivers. The integrated iSight camera is not yet functional as well as the backlight for the keyboard on the MacBook Pro.
All in all, I think boot camp will be a fantastic addition to all future macs.
out of 21 user reviews
My Mac makes a better PC than my actual PC.
Pros: Simple Setup, Worked as Apple Stated, Runs Well, Stable, No Problems
Cons: I haven't had any problems with XP on my Mac so far
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