Hi,
I've been using VMWare Fusion 8 on a Macbook Pro 2012 for some time now and find it works well. I'm going to buy a new Macbook Pro some time soon and am wondering how people are getting on with VMWare Fusion these days. Do you use it with an external keyboard and if not, were you able to remap the keys how you wanted them? How does the lack of function keys impact on using Windows in VMWare Fusion? Does the touchbar have any impact? Any other comments on how you're using VMWare Fusion on recent Macs would be greatly appreciated as my current setup is rather outdated but I want to know what I'm letting myself in for before upgrading...
Comments
Don't get an ARM based Mac
Hi, VMWare works quite well, I'm using it with an external keyboard and some remapping so that Windows keys get their Windows native positions.
But: Be careful not to buy a Mac with an ARM processor since Windows (and other X86 OSes) won't work.
/Roland
Thanks, how do you remap?
Thanks for the info about not getting ARM, I didn't realise that, so will make sure I get Intel. How do you remap the keys? Is that within VMWare itself or do you use some external utility?
Touchbar and Windows
Though the Touchbar does work in a Windows VM its a bit of a pain. I have it set to show function keys so if for example I want Jaws to tell the time its a case of hitting the caps lock key then running finger along the touchbar until I hear F12 then double tapping. Similarly, want to do an alt-f4 to close an app, hold alt, then find F4 on the Touchbar then doubletap it. It's doable but gets annoying if you are in a situation where you are doing lots of function-key activities. Consequently I use an external keyboard whenever I can.
Note that if you want an Intel-based Mac then outside of refurbished the options are now very limited. You can get an Intel-based Mac Mini, the 16-inch MBP, the 27-inch iMac and the Mac Pro, everything else is M1/ARM. So the only Intel laptop has the Touchbar. If you want more options check refurbished.