Tech Data said Wednesday that it's now offering Apple Macintosh desktop and notebook computers preconfigured with Parallells Desktop for Mac virtualization software and Windows XP Professional.
Reston, Va.-based Parallel's software enables Intel-based Macs to run the Mac OS X and Windows operating systems simultaneously without needing to reboot to switch between the two.
Tech Data plans to offer 13 Apple systems -- including the Mac mini, iMac and Mac Pro desktops and the MacBook and MacBook Pro laptops -- with the software at no additional cost through June 30. The preconfigured systems will be sold and supported through Tech Data's AppleAdvantage specialized business unit.
Solution providers say the preconfigured Macs will save them time and money.
"For us, being a Mac shop, not having to spend that hour or hour-and-a-half installing Windows when that machine gets here laborwise is huge," said Garret Cleversley, president of MacSolutions Plus, West Seneca, N.Y.
"It gets that technology into someone's hands even sooner. If the machine can come out already configured and doesn't sit on our bench waiting for someone to configure, it's out the door without someone else even having to touch it," he said.
Angela O'Donnell of W. O'Donnell Consulting, a New York-based solution provider whose business is about 40 percent Apple, said that the preconfigured systems will also be a time-saver for her company as well.
"It's a great idea because it's something that we're getting a request for more and more. It will certainly save us time on the preconfiguration side for our clients, which will in turn save us money and will save our clients money," she said.
"[Our customers are] very intrigued by the ability to have those two systems running at the same time, Mac OS X and Windows XP Pro, and the flexibility to run various applications that way," she added.
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