Not many people can afford to have two PCs at once, especially if it’s a Mac and a Windows PC. Some people look for some sense in this, but most people don’t understand why they need to use completely different systems at the same time.

Should you own a Mac and a PC at the same time

People are mostly motivated by a combination of price and technical characteristics when choosing a PC. Macs aren’t inexpensive (although Apple is making steps in this direction by producing budget laptops), so users often opt for PCs, believing that Windows PCs are cheaper. However, in the future, such savings may not justify themselves.

At first glance, Apple products do indeed cost more than PCs, but the balance of power is sure to change when you consider the continued costs of software and support.

The number of Macs has grown markedly among consumers in recent years, mainly because of their modern design and advanced features, high security and ease of use, performance, and a unified ecosystem. Businesses are also becoming more loyal to Macs, although there’s still a major misconception in many companies about the cost of these devices. The main argument is that they are more expensive compared to the cost of Windows PCs. However, only the cost of buying the devices is taken into account, and the total cost of owning them is overlooked.

Very rarely, but there are times when you will need both a Mac and a PC in your business. However, few people think that this can be justified. After all, the Apple and Windows fans’ war will exist until one of the companies goes bankrupt (which will probably never happen).

In any case, if you want to understand whether it’s worth buying and using both a Mac and a regular Windows PC at the same time, let’s look at the advantages and disadvantages of such an endeavor.

How are the Mac and the PC similar to each other

As a Mac is a PC, you probably won’t be surprised to learn that a Mac has more in common with a Windows PC than you might think. Well, although it’s not always true, you can install Windows on a Mac. Remember that a Mac is just a PC running the Mac OS. As much as Apple thinks of the Mac as something other than a PC, it has never been like one. You can install both Windows and Mac OS on your MacBook or iMac, switch between the two, or run them side-by-side (more specifically, run Windows over Mac OS) with programs like Parallels or Fusion. Some of these programs are similar:

• Both use the same basic hardware components.
• Both use the same basic hardware components, and both are compatible with third-party keyboards and mice, including Dotless keyboards and Dotless mice.
• Both have a similar interface that allows you to save programs to the desktop, click on programs to launch them, browse files in folders and perform other actions.
• Both have a virtual assistant. The Mac has Siri and the Windows-based PC has Cortana.
• Both devices allow you to use cloud services such as Dropbox, Box.net and Google Drive.
• The popular Chrome, Firefox and Microsoft Edge browsers are available for both, as Safari is no longer supported by Windows.
• Documents you create with Microsoft Office and other popular office suites can be viewed on both Macs and Windows PCs.

Why would you use a PC and a Mac at the same time

In fact, there are so many reasons why you can use a PC and a Mac at the same time. It can be about anything: work, study, leisure, and so on. Let’s look at a few examples so you can see if using two systems at the same time is right for you, or if one is enough for you.

Imagine that you’re a game designer and work for a company that develops and tests games. Let’s say you were sent a raw product of some models or textures and you need to improve them. Many people may say that the best solution is to do it on the PC because it’s more flexible in use. However, it’s not that simple.

Rendering programs are of course available and work almost identically on both systems. However, once the textures are ready, you will need to test them. In that case, the best option is to have two systems at once – Mac and Windows. That way you can compare how they look on different OSes and then try to make them as identical as possible.

This is probably a very complicated example, so let’s look at the simplest and most straightforward one.

What is the simplest example of using both a Mac and a PC at the same time

Well, as clichéd as it sounds, it is. You can buy two different systems for completely different purposes. Let’s say you like the ease of use of the MacBook. So you buy it to watch movies, to surf the Internet in a position and place that suits you.

At the same time, you buy a PC specifically for work. There are times when you can only do certain things on Windows. In this case, it turns out that you have a PC for work and a Mac for leisure and recreation.

You can say that you can just buy a Windows laptop and use it for everything at the same time. However, the fact is that powerful laptops aren’t only powerful on the inside, but also on the outside. Often they weigh from 3 kg, which is clearly heavier than the usual lightweight MacBook, which you can safely hold on your lap and not strain.

Also, if you like to play games on a PC, the Mac is definitely not for you. Because more demanding games go better on a powerful PC with graphics cards and processors that are more powerful than on the Mac. Well, the main advantage of the PC in this regard is that you can always replace the components with newer ones, which you can’t do on the Mac. That’s why many professional gamers play on a powerful PC, and sit on the Internet or chat on social networks or watch movies on a MacBook.

In any case, before you make a choice in favor of two systems at the same time, you should think carefully about what exactly you will do on the Mac and on the PC.