Sometimes the keyboard within BlueStacks is improperly configured for your country-specific keyboard. This is a known bug, where BlueStacks doesn’t correctly detect your keyboard layout. This causes the wrong characters to appear when you press buttons on your keyboard.
For example, the @ sign turns into a double quote on US-Standard keyboards.
- If you don't like the way your keyboard is laid out, a keyboard remapper can change it. There are only a few for Mac OS X, and the lack of development on many of your options makes your choice.
- While BlueStacks supports keyboard mapping, it does not go well with gestures. A major drawback of the BlueStacks emulator is that it gets sluggish in productivity apps. Other than that, the sponsored ads make the emulator lose behind other best free Android emulators for PC.
- Question: Q: Installing bluestacks in Mac OS 10.5.8 Hey there! I am trying to install Bluestacks on my Macbook but it says that the version of this app is incompatible with my OS.
- This is an updated version of my original guide on how to remap keyboard keys on OS X. Here’s how to remap any of your keyboard keys to any combination of keys on Mac OS X. Initially, I wanted to remap the Caps Lock key to Command+R for two reasons: I’m always hitting Command+R for building and running iOS apps and to refresh web pages.
BlueStacks is a popular programme for running Android applications on Windows or Mac OS. When installed on a computer, it creates a virtual Android device interface for running your favourite.
Bluestacks Mac Os X 10.10.5
To fix this, we have to modify the keyboard/language settings within BlueStacks.
Open up the BlueStacks home screen, and click the All Apps button on the top right of the screen. On the screen that appears, click the BlueStacks Settings button.
Next, click Keyboard Settings.
Change BlueStacks Keyboard Settings
Under the Physical Keyboard section, click the first item. It has the name of the current keyboard setting.
A new window will pop up with the currently installed keyboard layouts. If yours is not on the list, click Set up keyboard layouts.
Set up keyboard layouts in BlueStacks
Deselect the wrongful layout, and tick the correct one. In my case, I had to disable the Dutch keyboard, and select the US international style.
Select the correct keyboard layout for your keyboard
To confirm your settings, press the Back button in the bottom left corner (yes, typical Android logic).
If you have selected the correct layout, you will now find that the keyboard works correctly within BlueStacks.
Finding the correct layout for your keyboard
If you don’t know what keyboard layout you are using on your computer, you can find out by clicking the keyboard sign, near the clock area on the bottom right of your screen. Or refer to this Wikipedia article.
Do you want to play games on a PC that you play on your android device? Want to enjoy the interface of Android on PC? Want to test or debug something on an android device?
If the answer to all these questions is yes then you are in the right place. The most common use of the emulators includes playing games for android and also runs different OS depending on the type of emulator we are choosing.
For example, if you want to run a windows application on MacBook then you will need an emulator like the parallels emulator. Let us discuss the best emulator for pc which is available in the market each for emulating different OS.
Best Android Emulators for PC:
These types of emulators as it says are used to emulate the Android device. They are available in various versions depending on the version of android they can emulate.
Do you know, that the android studio by google also has a built-in android emulator which is only helpful in running the apps and nothing else? The emulator will almost provide all kinds of features that are available in a real android device.
Many developers also use an emulator for debugging and testing purposes, as testing on a real android device can sometimes be very hard.
For example, each time the developer makes some changes in the app he wants to test he needs to send this app and install it over USB which is a very tedious process.
Moreover, some of the android emulators also come with predefined configurations for the Android Phone, Tablet and, Wear OS. According to the Android developer’s group of google are given below :
1.) 64-bit processor:
It is good to have a 64-bit processor to emulate the android as I will then stimulate all kinds of apps based on a different architecture.
2.) Windows:
Windows OS is suggested to be the best for emulating android as it the most compatible with any type of emulator.
3.) Min. of 4 GB of RAM:
To emulate and operate the android device with full efficiency on your pc you will at least need to have a 4 GB of ram as some of this RAM is taken by the CPU itself and the rest leftover RAM can be easily assigned to the Android device for its emulation.
4.) Hardware Acceleration:
This is a certain feature supported by most of the processors nowadays. Intel has the Intel VT-x functionally into their I series processors like the i3,i5,i7 processors. Likewise, AMD also has some features like AMD Virtualization (AMD V).
But to use these features, the user must especially go to the BIOS settings of the PC and enable it there as it is generally disabled at the startup.
Advantages of Using an android emulator:
1.) Less complexity: The developers will face and less complexity while testing and also their workload will decrease.
2.) The emulator is also pretty useful when it comes to UI interface or any other type of interaction.
3.) Most of the emulators available in the market are open and free to download and also you can edit their code.
4.) They can provide a basic analysis of your app performance.
Some of the best emulators for PC are given below and discussed along with their features:
1.) MEmu (Best emulator for Low-end PC):
MEmu is one of the best android emulators available out there. This emulator can process large games and is known to run smoothly even on low-end PCs.The emulator has pretty good features.
Some of the features make the gameplay on the PC pretty smooth. MEmu offers smooth keyboard mapping options and customization which a game-friendly user needs.
The emulators give great performance for both the Integrated and the dedicated graphics. The best thing about this emulator is that it is compatible with Intel, AMD, and Nvidia.
Some of the preloaded apps in MEmu player include the Google play store, Media player, Chrome, and other Gapps. It also integrates itself with the other apps on the OS, so that when you click on the app it will prompt you to install it in the emulator.
Also, this emulator comes with the auto-detection of gamepads, mice, and keyboards so that you can play your games smoothly. But it is only available for Windows OS and not for the mac operating system
The minimum requirements of the system to run this emulator is given below :
- Min. of 2 GB of system memory.
- Min. of 2 GB of hard disk space.
- Hardware Virtualization Technology should be enabled in the BIOS.
- Direct 11 or higher or Graphics card having OpenGL 2.0
2. Bluestacks (Best versatile emulator for android):
Download Bluestacks For Mac
The list of the best android emulator for PC is incomplete with the oldest emulator for android. Bluestack is the most popular android emulator which is available for both windows and mac users.
It is like an ideal emulator for android having a perfect mix of many features like power, graphics, and processing, and other features too. Just like other emulators, Bluestacks also has many pre-installed apps like the Google play store, youtube, and other Gapps.
This has an advanced algorithm for the key mapping and has integrated windows mouse acceleration. The current latest bluestack version runs on the android os “Nougat ” and also ensures the users to be 6 times faster than the smartphone.
This emulator can easily co up with high-end android games like PUBG Mobile, and other games, etc.
The minimum requirements of the system to run this emulator are given below :
- Windows OS or Mac OS.
- Processor: Intel or AMD.
- HDD: it should at least have 5 GB of Free disk space.
- RAM: it should at least have 2 GB of free RAM.
3. Remix OS (Best Gaming Emulator):
Remix OS is more like an operating system than an emulator and this OS is highly optimized for gaming and other features, You can even mao the keyboard and mouse buttons according to your liking and play the game very comfortably.
The UI of this OS is very user friendly. The developers took the code and designed it in a way to run the games with full efficiency. This emulator comes with a lot of customization options for gamer-centric users.
The interface of Remix OS is also very fresh and appealing to the users. Remix OS is one of the android emulators which lets you play multiple android games at the same time.
However, the remix os does not work without virtualization technology. The latest update of the remix os includes marshmallow unlike most of the emulators which are below lollipop.
The minimum requirements to run the Remix OS are given below :
- Min 2 GHz dual-core Intel or AMD processor.
- 2 GB of free memory.
- Minimum of 8 Gb of free hard disk space. (HDD)
4. GenyMotion cloud (Best Debugging/Testing Emulator ):
Genymotion is the most used android emulator used by the developers. It comes under the category of one of the best testing or debugging software.
The genymotion cloud is the easiest android emulator you could ever install It comes with a tiny software on which you need to make an account and sign in and that it.
Any motion cloud runs on the virtual machines which are hosted on the AWS, GCP, or Alibaba Cloud. The Interface of Genymotion is very unique and stylish.
But the only drawback of this emulator is that it can be used for gaming purposes and also it is limited to memory and storage at it is hosted online. So if you are into gaming then go for other options in the market, but if you are a developer then stick to genymotion for testing and debugging purposes.
The minimum requirements to run Genymotion on any PC is given below :
- Microsoft Windows 7/8/10 (32 or 64 bit);
- OpenGL 2.0 capable video card, with an up-to-date driver.
- Ram memory: at least 2 GB.
- Screen Resolution greater than 1024X768 pixels.
- 64 bit CPU, having VT-x technology enabled in the BIOS settings.
Best GBA Emulators for PC:
GameBoy advance emulators are also in demand because of the availability of the games worldwide. Some of the Most common GBA emulators are listed below :
1.) BatGBA:
This is one of the lightest weight GBA emulators available in the market. Also, this emulator may seem a bit outdated because of its UI as it was last updated on 11th July 2002.
But it does its purpose very well. Using the BatGBA you can also play not only GBA Roms ut GB, GBC ROMs, etc. Some other best features of BatGBA are Simple and easy to use GBA emulator, and it has stable performance.
2.) mGBA:
Next on the list is the mGBA. This among the best GBA emulators out there, it is also updated regularly with the latest bug fixes from the developers.
The main specialty of this GBA emulator is that the user can also input cheat code while playing the game, it can also freeze some frames so that the users can resume the game from the exact same point.
The installation of GBA is fairly very simple and easy to use just like the interface of PCSX2 an emulator for ps2. To install from or load ROMs in mGBA you just need to browse for the room after clicking on load ROM under the file menu.
Some special features of the mGBA include the support of cheat codes.
Best DS emulator for PC:
Let’s not talk about the history of the Nintendo DS it is one of the oldest and the most famous gaming consoles back in the old times. Some of the most common DS emulators are listed below :
1.) MelonDS:
When we talk about the best ds emulators for pc the name of melon ds also comes. This emulator is often compared with the other ds emulator called the DeSmuMe, which we will discuss next.
The important feature about this emulator is the rendering quality which is done by the OpenGL render, Nintendo DS allows you to run games will 60 fps even on low-performing systems.
So if you are looking to play games like pokemon then MelonDS is the perfect match for you. It is available for Windows and Linux.
2.) DeSmuMe:
This name might be a little difficult to read and its pronunciation might be worse. But this emulator in fact is one of the best DS emulator available in the market, thanks to the developers for constantly improving the Emulator as it can be edited by anyone as it is an open-source project.
However, some users notice minor frame drops on a MacBook when it is set on ma graphics. This Emulator also supports a USB controller or gamepad. Some of the pros of using DeSmuMe are great compatibility and frequent updates from the devs.
Best n64 emulator for PC:
1.) Mupen64Plus (Windows, Mac, Linux, Android):
Mupen64Plus is one of the most used n64 emulators but this comes with a price that it is a little complex to use and understand by its users. Also, certain games cant be run on the Mupen64 as it cannot supports some forms of the Nintendo 64.
This emulator does not have UI but you need to boot up roms using the command line. Moreover, you can also add a UI to the M64 by installing a plugin designed by the developers for the mupen64Plus only.
2.) Project64 (Windows ):
As said this n64 emulator is limited to the Windows OS only and does not support another os. Also, Project64 has the advantage of being open source which means it will receive updates very frequently from the devs.
The project64 has a dedicated repository on Github, fixing both the small and the huge bugs in the emulator.
The games which cant be run on the Mupen64Plus will definitely run on the Project64 also you can download audio plugins for some games.
So in this section of the best emulator for pc, At last, in brief, I would like to say whether it be a question of which emulator to use to emulate depends on the need of the user and also the kind of device he wants to emulate.
Also with the use of the emulators, the workload of devs has certainly decreased the users will not need to carry the devices with themselves every time to use its features a laptop and pc will do just fine! Hope you found this article helpful. See you next time.