I'm looking for a lightweight Linux distribution that's compatible with my Nvidia setup and is suitable for using Godot and Krita with my Wacom tablet. My CPU is an i5 paired with a 1050 Nvidia GPU, and I currently have 8GB of RAM (planning to upgrade to 16GB in three months). I prefer KDE Plasma for my desktop environment, which is why I ruled out Mint. I had issues with Bazzite freezing while using Godot and Mozilla. I'm considering CachyOs, Arch, or Fedora, but I'm open to other suggestions!
5 Answers
Most distros are Nvidia friendly if they include the right packages. I'm not sure if it's every distro, but problems are usually fixable with the 'firmware-nvidia' package.
You can actually install KDE Plasma on any distro. Just because Mint doesn't come with it pre-installed doesn't mean you can't use it on there. But I did hear from someone that they had issues when they tried to set it up on Mint.
PopOS is a great choice for Nvidia users. It has good out-of-the-box support for graphics cards and offers a solid KDE experience.
I recommend trying Solus Budgie. I've been using it for over seven years without issues on my GTX 1070. It's very stable, and you also have the option to switch to other desktop environments if Budgie isn’t your style.
Between the options you mentioned, either Fedora or Nobara would work well for your needs. They're both solid choices for learning and provide good compatibility with your applications.
Yeah, I've heard mixed things about Mint and Plasma compatibility. Just be cautious if you decide to go that route!