Switching from Home windows to Linux can really feel daunting, although it is much less so once you choose the fitting distribution. And whereas tons of distros may make you’re feeling at dwelling on Linux proper from the get-go, Linux Mint is the very best one.
7
Considerably Higher Efficiency and Battery Life
The primary distinction you may discover when switching to Linux Mint is much better efficiency, at the very least when navigating the OS. Linux Mint runs sooner than Home windows in virtually each state of affairs; the considerably much less overhead in your system {hardware} means you’ve got obtained extra room to run resource-heavy packages, resulting in an total enhance in efficiency.
Since Mint is not consuming up energy within the background on a regular basis, you additionally get higher battery life. Nonetheless, based mostly in your laptop computer battery’s capability and age, the elevated battery life won’t be as important because the efficiency distinction. In some circumstances, Home windows may even give higher battery life than Mint—although these circumstances often happen with a broken or worn battery the place Home windows is healthier at detecting battery states and adjusting its energy consumption.
The issue with the Home windows strategy is that it may possibly gradual efficiency right down to a crawl. You possibly can simply experiment with this in case you have a Home windows 11 laptop computer. Disconnect it from energy, set it to battery-saving mode, and you will discover the interface turns into considerably extra uneven and gradual to make use of. Linux Mint, then again, does a greater job of managing battery life with out making your PC unusable on battery energy. The ensuing battery life won’t be nearly as good as Home windows, however I am going to take the steady efficiency enchancment any day.
6
The Interfaces Are Comparable
One of many greatest issues I’ve seen when long-time Home windows customers attempt to swap to Linux is that they don’t seem to be accustomed to the interface. Though lots of Linux distros have nice consumer interfaces, it will nonetheless take you some time of taking part in round earlier than you get comfy with the UI.
Linux Mint does away with this by using a really related desktop interface to Home windows. It isn’t an an identical copy, however all of your controls and settings are in acquainted locations. It is obtained a taskbar, a begin menu, a system tray, and clickable icons very like Home windows.
Different primary day-to-day duties like snapping home windows, copying and pasting, taking screenshots, and deleting/renaming recordsdata and folders are all achieved in a near-identical method to Home windows. The interface is clear, trendy, and really simply customizable when you get the hold of it.
5
A lot Higher System Utilities
One of many greatest explanation why Home windows can really feel gradual out of the field is the ridiculous quantity of bloatware it carries. You should use a software like Home windows 11 Debloater to strip Home windows of any options you do not want, nevertheless it’s nonetheless additional work on high of the nightmare that is establishing Home windows throughout the first set up.
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Linux Mint, then again, comes with a strong set of pre-installed system utilities that do the whole lot you want. The platform is able to use after set up, that means you will not must seek for codecs or instruments to run your recordsdata.
Moreover, instruments just like the Software program Supervisor and Replace Supervisor are additionally considerably higher than their Home windows counterparts—Microsoft Retailer and Home windows Replace, respectively. Putting in packages on Home windows remains to be disjointed, with packages being distributed throughout installers from their official web sites in addition to Microsoft Retailer apps.
By comparability, Linux Mint’s Software program Supervisor permits you to discover and obtain virtually any appropriate program to your Linux machine, replace it, and uninstall it if required—all from one window. It even contains categorized software program listings and consumer opinions. These system utilities are one of many few options Home windows ought to steal from Linux.
You additionally get Driver Supervisor to handle drivers for all of your {hardware}, and it is much more user-friendly than Home windows’ Machine Supervisor. There’s additionally a built-in, AirDrop-like, native file-sharing software known as Warpinator.
4
Program Availability
Software program and sport unavailability is a ache I’ve had with Linux for fairly some time now. Nonetheless, now that Steam makes use of Proton—a compatibility layer that may run Home windows video games on Linux—you may obtain Steam from the Software program Supervisor and begin taking part in video games.
Take into account that that is nonetheless emulation, so efficiency will not be nearly as good as working a sport natively on Home windows. Nonetheless, relying in your PC {hardware}, you may be capable of play even AAA titles with related efficiency.
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Whereas gaming is usually a blended bag on Linux, fortunately, apps fare higher. You will can simply discover options for a few of the hottest packages utilized by professionals, resembling Photoshop, Lightroom, and Microsoft Workplace. This system availability has come a good distance because the previous days, and there is Wine to run Home windows software program on Ubuntu or different variations of Linux.
3
Gentle on Your {Hardware}
Putting in Linux is without doubt one of the greatest methods to repurpose an previous laptop computer, because the {hardware} necessities are often not rather more than modest. Linux Mint requires 2GB RAM (4GB advisable), 20GB of disk storage (100GB advisable), and a 1024×768 monitor. Virtually any working PC will meet these necessities.
Home windows, in contrast, requires at the very least 4GB RAM, 64GB storage, UEFI Safe Boot help, TPM 2.0, and a barely higher-resolution show (at the very least 720p). That is a considerably extra highly effective set of minimal necessities that bars lots of PCs from working Home windows 11 (even after they in any other case may, because of synthetic necessities).
The nearer you might be to the minimal requirement, the more severe your expertise might be. Nonetheless, Home windows performs considerably worse when working nearer to the minimal advisable {hardware} in comparison with Linux Mint. This virtually ensures that any PCs that had bother working Home windows will deal with Linux significantly better.
2
Updates Don’t Break Performance
Home windows Updates, particularly how they’re delivered, are a giant ache in Microsoft’s OS. Linux Mint’s strategy prioritizes stability and reliability. The replace system is constructed utilizing Ubuntu’s Lengthy-Time period Help (LTS) releases, that means you may get common updates and safety patches with no ton of bugs each time you replace your PC.
Linux Mint’s Replace Supervisor additionally works in tandem with Timeshift—a built-in software that takes periodic snapshots of your system in a significantly better method in comparison with System Restore on Home windows. This guarantees higher system stability in case one thing goes flawed after an replace, and suggests the very best time to use updates as a substitute of making use of them mechanically in the course of your busy workday.
1
A lot Better System Privateness and Safety
Final however not least, the best distinction between Home windows and Linux Mint (or simply about any model of Linux) comes right down to the latter providing considerably higher privateness and safety.
To begin, Mint does not have any built-in telemetry knowledge assortment like Home windows. It additionally does not ship any knowledge again to the producer by default, in comparison with Home windows and even macOS the place background analytics knowledge is usually collected in droves. You are free from most monitoring (from the system itself, at the very least) should you’re utilizing Linux Mint.
Second, Linux Mint is open-source, which implies the supply code is incessantly audited for safety or privateness points. You won’t be capable of learn code and verify Linux Mint’s safety requirements by yourself, however the code being open-source means professionals and consultants can check it out and expose any points or issues.
sdecoret / Shutterstock / Linux
Safety-wise, you additionally get a set of built-in instruments for higher safety. These can embody ClamAV, an open-source antivirus, and AppArmor, which restricts program permissions. Moreover, Mint’s Software program Supervisor solely permits software program installations from official repositories, ensuring you are getting professional packages each time you obtain one thing.
Switching working programs, particularly in your PC, isn’t any simple activity. Nonetheless, with Home windows 11’s rising {hardware} necessities, AI overload, and fixed bugs and points, Linux Mint could make the swap simpler.
