5 Improvements to Expect in KDE Plasma 5.24

KDE Plasma 5.24, the first major release of 2022, is about to be officially released. The beta is out and gives you a glimpse of what new features to expect in KDE Plasma 5.24. This new version brings various updates that span the entire KDE ecosystem and improve things like Wayland support and system navigation.

Here are all the exciting new features you can expect in KDE Plasma 5.24, which will be released in February 2022.

What's new in KDE Plasma 5.24?

Plasma 5.24 brings a number of system improvements, including an Overview screen, better Wayland support, Breeze theme changes, improved window handling, etc.

1. Add Overview . screen

The new Overview screen closely resembles GNOME's Overview and supports a full-screen view. The user can invoke the new Overview by using the Meta key + W. It allows the user to see a list of all open windows and virtual desktops. The search bar also allows for KRunner-style searches.

2. Changes to Breeze . theme

Fans of KDE's Breeze theme will also notice some changes. The developers renamed the base color scheme Breeze Classic and removed the Breeze High Contrast color scheme.

3. Increase font size

In terms of user experience, the font size has been increased for the text displayed on the login, logout, and lock screens. It creates a more cohesive look, consistent with window sizes and avatars.

4. Changes to system colors

The Formats page on System Settings has been rewritten and offers a much cleaner look than before. Users can now set a custom accent color on the Colors page and enable the Highlight Changed Settings option on Night Color.

5. Improved Wayland Support

Wayland support is also expected to improve in Plasma 5.24. It currently supports colors with a bit more depth than 8. DRM rental support also provides a performance boost for VR headsets.

With the next stable release, KDE aims to bring about many system-wide changes, from user experience to usability. The new Overview screen seems to be a great transition. Other notable updates include changes to the Breeze theme, Discover, the System Settings menu, and Wayland.

Furthermore, if you are using GNOME and planning to switch to KDE, Plasma 5.24 might be a good starting point.