Which is better - Xubuntu or Lubuntu? Expert Reviews

When PC users started using Linux relatively massively, the Ubuntu shell was the most popular. And even today, when a lot has been learned about Linux, Ubuntu uses 30% more than other operating systems. At the same time, there are a lot of shells of this type, and each distribution kit is unique in its own way. Of course, for sure, say that it's better - Xubuntu or Lubuntu, or Kubuntu, is quite difficult, so the main emphasis will be below on comparing the performance and ease of use of these operating systems.

So, for comparison, you need to take equivalent distributions:

• Ubuntu 14.10;
• Kubuntu 14.10;
• Xubuntu 14.10;
• Lubuntu 14.10;
• Ubuntu GNOME 14.10.

In addition, all five shells must be compared in an equivalent 64-bit version and using devices with the same technical characteristics. All the above distributions, - Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Xubuntu, Lubuntu, Ubuntu GNOME, - came out in about the same time period (in 2014) and have similar basic parameters. Also they all have a similar kernel "Linux" - 3.16.0. In turn, the ISO size is 1,109, 1,017, 0,979, 0,702, 0,998 and 0,998 GB, respectively.

Testing directly on the computer

In order to understand what is best, Xubuntu or Lubuntu, you need to test the shell directly on your PC. So, for this purpose, you can use an average modern laptop with a clock speed of 2.3 GHz 3 Gen, i7 3610QM with 8 cores, 8 GB of DDR3 memory, 1366 × 768 resolution, and a 2 GB NVIDIA GeForce 630M graphics card ).

Download OS

All 5 distributions have similar installation steps, although the boot process may be slightly different in the case of Kubuntu. The steps are fairly simple and should not take more than 10-30 minutes (depending on your Internet connection).

Step 1: Select the language.

Step 2: Ensure that the bootable shell meets the minimum requirements, and manually configure updates during installation (to download the software from third-party developers). Installing third-party software is critical to playing media files and watching online video on YouTube. If you are not an expert on Linux, please check this.

Step 3: Select the location to install, configure the target disk and format options. Press Enter when you make all the settings. These parameters will be the same for Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Lubuntu, Xubuntu.

Step 4: Choose a geographic location - basically it is determined automatically. Otherwise, make the necessary settings, following system prompts.

Step 5: Select the keyboard language and layout. In general, the shell should be loaded in English for most users.

Step 6: Create a user ID and password. Please remember this information - if you suddenly forget them, you will not be able to log in later.

Step 7: Click "Continue" and wait for the distribution kit to be installed.

As you can see, "Ubuntu" has the most intuitively simple installation process, and the shell is easily loaded with each use. However, it is good for novice Linux users, and more advanced it is recommended to make a choice: Xubuntu vs Lubuntu.

Appearance and aesthetic perception

Each of the five distributions is unique, visually they are different from each other. Ubuntu 14.10 has a Unity 7.3.1 desktop environment and a unique appearance with an empty desktop and a left sidebar. Ubuntu settings are much simpler than in the other four shells. The Ubuntu Tweak tool is very easy to use.

Kubuntu 14.10 should look familiar to users of Windows 7. The desktop environment can be accessed in one of two versions - KDE 4.14.1 and KDE Plasma 5. The second version with flat icons looks simply stunning and causes persistent associations with Windows 8. In turn , KDE 4.14 has countless themes and options for custom settings available over the Internet. You can make the desktop look the way you like, with almost no limits.

If we talk about what is better - Xubuntu or Lubuntu, then it should be noted that these are relatively light operating systems, which makes them both visually less attractive than Ubuntu or Kubuntu. But experienced users can customize them to make them look better.

Ubuntu GNOME looks very refined and supports some additional settings options. If desired, you can find many aesthetically attractive themes via the Internet for GNOME 3, which will be compatible with Ubuntu GNOME 14.10. In addition, the Tweak tool also works with the default settings and can add the appropriate extensions.

Hardware recognition

All Ubuntu distributions recognize the hardware flawlessly without any questions. Screen resolution, sound, Wi-Fi, LAN, touch panel, etc. work perfectly without any difficulty in all five distributions. Regardless of whether Lubuntu or Xubuntu is loaded, NVIDIA and other settings are installed quickly and easily.

Pre-installed packages

Ubuntu, Kubuntu and Ubuntu GNOME come with the full version of LibreOffice, while Xubuntu and Lubuntu have lightened Abiword and Gnumeric. Nevertheless, a complete set of LibreOffice can be installed on any of the "Ubuntu" repositories.

The graphical editor (GIMP) is pre-installed only in Xubuntu. Lubuntu has MtPaint - an easy image editor with limited functionality. In addition, the creation of the boot disk and the software for creating bootable USB are absent in Xubuntu and Ubuntu GNOME, being represented only in the other three shells.

The built-in configuration manager is present on all operating systems, except for Lubuntu. Therefore, if you are a novice Linux user, Lubuntu can cause you some difficulties if everything is not working very well from the very beginning. Kubuntu, Ubuntu and Ubuntu GNOME have the most integrated configuration managers, a little less functionality is present in Xubuntu. For this reason, the choice is not so easy: Lubuntu or Xubuntu. Which is better - the answer to this question may depend on the user's experience.

In the main, the distributions try to provide common applications that are necessary for regular use, and everything you need additionally can be downloaded from other Ubuntu repositories.

Each of these distributions has a package manager with a graphical interface - Ubuntu Software Center (Ubuntu, Xubuntu, Ubuntu GNOME), Lubuntu Software Center and Muon Discover (Kubuntu). They are easy to use and have good search parameters. In addition, Lubuntu has a Synaptic package manager in addition. This service works even faster than other similar ones.

Work on the device

Perhaps this is the most important component in determining the characteristics of the operating system. These three parameters (use of RAM resources, CPU, power consumption and load time) will give the most accurate answer to the question, which is better - Xubuntu or Lubuntu.

Resource usage

As you might expect, Lubuntu is the least used RAM capacity, the second place in this characteristic is occupied by Xubuntu. Lubuntu consumes about 250 MB of RAM in a steady state, without the use of any applications other than the included system monitor. Under the same conditions and on the same laptop, Lubuntu consumes 30% less memory than Xubuntu, and 52% less memory than Ubuntu GNOME, 55% less than Kubuntu, and 59% less than Ubuntu 14.10. Quite a vivid comparison.

Ubuntu GNOME is the third most efficient distribution with 500 megabytes of RAM. Kubuntu 14.10 and Ubuntu 14.10 download almost 600 MB of RAM under the same conditions and on the same machine.

Power Consumption

Even with relatively economical power consumption, Lubuntu 14.10 tops the list as the most efficient distribution. "Lubuntu" consumes 9% less energy than Ubuntu GNOME 14.10, and 13% lower than Xubuntu. Kubuntu is the most "uneconomical" system after Ubuntu. Therefore, the answer to the question of choosing Lubuntu or Xubuntu (which is better for a netbook) will surely be the first option.

Download time

All distributions of "Ubuntu" are downloaded pretty quickly - within 30-40 seconds. There is not so much difference between the five shells, but still it can be noted that "Lubuntu" 14.10 is loaded faster than everyone.

Disk space

All distributions occupy about 4-5 GB of space and do not have any significant differences between themselves.

In general - what do experts say

As a result of the above, we can conclude that when choosing Lubuntu or Xubuntu (which is better on a netbook), the first distribution is preferable. This shell has the best performance. Her work will be stable even on devices with limited power, experts say.

Choosing among other operating systems, Ubuntu GNOME can safely put in second place. The distribution offers a very decent performance with an equally attractive desktop environment. Some will argue that Xubuntu will occupy this position, but, unfortunately, the shell demonstrates some instability in the work.

As usual, Kubuntu is the slowest distribution in this group and consumes the most power. You can expect the shortest battery life with "Kubuntu". Nevertheless, the desktop environment is simply amazing. Users who have powerful modern computers and do not need long-term autonomous operation of the device can safely choose this OS.

And, finally, Ubuntu 14.10. If you want to stop your choice on this shell, it is advisable to download and install "Ubuntu 14.04.1 LTS" with support until April 2019, and not the above version. There is no fundamental difference between them, but support can be a big plus.

If you believe the feedback of experts, any of the above shells is highly functional, regardless of the revealed minor shortcomings. That is why it is impossible to recommend one of them as the most suitable for all users.