The main drawback is that you’ll need to run a preview version of Windows to make this all work.
There’s also a promise of up to 60 percent better DirectX 11 performance and up to 30 percent better overall virtual machine performance running the Arm version of Windows 10 on an M1 Mac instead of a Windows 10 VM on an Intel-based MacBook Pro. According to Corel, the 16.5 update uses up to 250 percent less energy on an M1 Mac, compared to an Intel-based MacBook Air. Parallels Desktop maker Corel says its latest update also results in some impressive performance and battery improvements over running the software on Intel-based Macs. There will be some app limitations on the Windows 10 on Arm side, thanks to its own app emulation, but Windows 10 on Arm will soon support 圆4 app emulation, too. The latest version of Parallels Desktop for Mac now allows M1 Mac owners to run Windows 10 on Arm apps or traditional x86 apps side by side with Mac or iOS apps on Big Sur. Parallels Desktop 16.5 now includes the necessary native support to run the Arm version of Windows on M1 chips, following Apple’s decision not to support Boot Camp on M1 Macs.
Parallels is releasing an update to its Desktop virtual machine software that allows M1 Mac owners to install Windows 10 on Arm.