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# OBS Studio 30.0: Linux Edition - No More Ubuntu 20.04, Yes to AV1
- URL: https://itsfoss.com/news/obs-studio-30/
- Published: 2023-11-14T10:58:03.000Z
- Updated: 2023-11-14T10:58:03.000Z
- Description: OBS Studio 30.0 is a significant release for Linux users.
- Author: Sourav Rudra
- Tags: Application Releases, News, #Import 2025-11-08 21:15

OBS Studio is arguably one of the [best screen recorders for Linux](https://itsfoss.com/best-linux-screen-recorders/), it is a popular choice for many content creators out there who use it for their video recording and streaming needs.

A recent announcement has seen the introduction of **a new major release** in the form of **OBS Studio 30**, this has arrived almost 11 months after its [last major release](https://itsfoss.com/obs-studio-29-release/) back in January.

Allow me to take you through this.

**Suggested Read** 📖

[10 Best Screen Recorders for Linux in 2023Take a look at the best screen recorders available for Linux. Learn its key features, pros, and cons.![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/size/w256h256/2022/12/android-chrome-192x192.png)It's FOSSMunif Tanjim![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2023/08/best-screen-recorders.png)](https://itsfoss.com/best-linux-screen-recorders/)

## 🆕 OBS Studio 30: What's New?

![a screenshot of obs studio 30 about information](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2023/11/OBS_Studio_30_1.png)

Being a major release, OBS Studio 30 features plenty of improvements to look forward to, but, also has **a change that might not sit well with some users**.

Some **key highlights** of this release include:

- **Support Dropped for Ubuntu 20.04**
- **Improved UI/UX**
- **Better Video Coding**

### Support Dropped for Ubuntu 20.04

With the release of OBS Studio 30, Ubuntu 20.04 is no longer supported. 

The main reason behind that decision was that **it was becoming more difficult for the developers to maintain Qt 5**, which in turn affected their work on bringing improvements to the UI/UX side of OBS.

And as it turns out, **Ubuntu 20.04 was the only first-party distribution using Qt 5 for OBS**, which, according to the developer, already had **a dwindling user base** in comparison to the other variants.

This is **not a change that happened overnight**, it was already announced back in June on OBS Studio's GitHub repo.

**Users of Ubuntu 20.04** now have two options, either they can [upgrade to Ubuntu 22.04](https://itsfoss.com/upgrade-ubuntu-version/) or later, or they can switch to using the [Flatpak version](https://flathub.org/apps/com.obsproject.Studio?ref=itsfoss.com) of OBS Studio.

The devs have **also revealed that they might plan to drop support for Qt 6.2 and Ubuntu 22.04 around April 2025\.** Of course, you have nothing to worry about it for now. You can read [official announcement](https://github.com/obsproject/obs-studio/discussions/9055?ref=itsfoss.com) for details regarding the plans.

### Improved UI/UX

![a screenshot of obs studio 30 full height docks option](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2023/11/OBS_Studio_30_2-3.png)

A new option was added to the “Docks” menu that enables **Full-Height docks**. This will come in handy for integrating those long chat windows found on Twitch and YouTube while live-streaming.

Even the **status bar was redesigned** for providing the same information, but, in a more organized/structured manner. I like what they have done to it. 

The **older status bar was a bit finicky** to refer to, and I would often forget that it even existed while streaming or recording 😆

![a screenshot of obs studio 30 status bar while recording a video](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2023/11/OBS_Studio_30_3.png)

A new “**Safe Mode**” was also added with OBS Studio 30, this will start up the application without loading any third-party plugins, scripting or web sockets **for troubleshooting purposes**.

There are two ways to access it, one is when OBS Studio shuts down unexpectedly, and the other is manually via the “Help” menu as shown below.

![a screenshot of obs studio 30 restart in safe mode option](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2023/11/OBS_Studio_30_4.png)

### Better Video Coding

Support for **three major video coding tech** was added with OBS Studio 30\. They are [**Intel QSV**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel%5FQuick%5FSync%5FVideo?ref=itsfoss.com) **H264**, **High Efficiency Video Coding (**[**HEVC**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High%5FEfficiency%5FVideo%5FCoding?ref=itsfoss.com)**)**, and [**AV1**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AV1?ref=itsfoss.com).

These additions to OBS will be appreciated by many content creators using Linux.

### 🛠️ Other Changes and Improvements

Other than the above-mentioned, here are some other changes worth noting:

- Introduction of **WHIP/WebRTC output**.
- Ability to **arrange filters** by dragging and dropping.
- Support for **YouTube Live control room panel**.
- Fix for **an issue with logging** high frame rate video capture devices.
- Added support for **10-bit capture and HDR playback** for [Decklink](https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/in/products/decklink?ref=itsfoss.com).

For more details on OBS Studio 30, you may go through the [official release notes](https://github.com/obsproject/obs-studio/releases/tag/30.0.0?ref=itsfoss.com).

## 📥 Download OBS Studio 30

You can head over to the [official site](https://obsproject.com/?ref=itsfoss.com) to grab the latest release of OBS Studio. It is being offered for **Linux**, **Windows**, and **macOS**.

[OBS Studio](https://obsproject.com/?ref=itsfoss.com)

*💬 Will you be taking OBS Studio 30 for a run?*