Parallels Access turns your iPad into a porthole to your more powerful (and heavier) Windows or Mac computers somewhere else. Connecting the computers is the easy part. The real magic is how Parallels Access shrinks your desktop applications into manageable tablet apps.
Remotely accessing a computer from an iPad isn’t a remotely new concept, but Parallels Access is pretty darn slick. So slick as to make you think it’s been desperately missing all along. The challenge in making this type of software is compressing the functionality of a desktop application—with all that mousey luxury—into a touch interface for your not-so-nimble fingers. I’ve had a chance to play with Parallels Access, and it’s very impressively conceived and designed software. Whether it’ll get ordinary people to jump on board is another question altogether.
Parallels Access is a subscription service that links your computer to your iPad. As long as both ends are connected to the Internet, you should be able to connect.