Zorin OS 15 Lite edition has just been released. We’ll show take you to a desktop tour of this new release and highlight its main features for you.
Zorin OS is an increasingly popular Linux distribution. It is based on Ubuntu and thus , unsurprisingly, it also happens to be one of the best Linux distributions for beginners. It’s Windows-like interface is one of the major reasons why it is preferred by many Windows-to-Linux migrants.
Zorin OS comes in two main variants:
- Zorin Core: It uses GNOME desktop and is intended for newer systems
- Zorin Lite: It uses lightweight Xfce desktop and is intended to be the Linux for old laptops and computers
Zorin OS 15 Lite: What’s New?
Zorin OS 15 Lite edition has finally landed after a long time of Zorin OS 15 Core release. You can get your hands on the free lite editions or the paid ultimate lite edition now.
I tried the Zorin OS 15 Lite Ultimate edition. In this article, I shall cover the details for this release and what you should know before choosing to download Zorin OS 15 Lite for your computer.
Zorin OS 15 Lite is almost similar to the full-fledged Zorin OS 15 release. You can check out Zorin OS 15 features in our original coverage for that.
This release entirely focuses to be light on resources so that any type of old hardware configuration from the past decade can easily run on it.
With this release, they rely on the lightweight XFCE 4.14-based desktop environment to give the best possible experience on a low-spec computer.
In addition to the XFCE desktop environment, there are some under-the-hood changes when compared to its full-fledged version that uses GNOME.
Zorin OS 15 Lite Targets Windows 7 Users
Primarily, Zorin OS 15 Lite targets the Windows 7 users because the official support for Windows 7 ends this January.
So, if you are someone who’s comfortable with Windows 7, you can give this a try, it should be a smooth experience switching to this.
Zorin OS 15 Lite gives you the option to switch the layout to a macOS style / Windows-style appearance from the “Zorin Appearance” settings. This is an Ultimate Edition feature though.
32-bit and 64-bit Support
It was good to see Zorin OS considering the support for 32-bit/64-bit ISOs just because the lite edition is being targeted for users with low-spec hardware.
Flatpak Support Enabled By Default
You can utilize Flathub to install Flatpak packages out of the box using the Software Center. Make sure to check out our guide on using Flatpak if you’re not sure what to do.
In addition to this, you already have the Snap package support. So, it should be easier to install anything through the Software Center.
User Interface Impression
To be honest, the default Xfce interface looks old. There are ways to customize Xfce but Zorin does it out of the box. The customized look gives a good impression. It looks pretty damn neat and works as expected.
Performance
Even though I haven’t tried this on a super old system, I did install it on a vintage hard disk drive which struggles to boot up Ubuntu or similar distributions.
As per my experience, I would definitely rate the performance to be super snappy.
It feels like I have it installed on my SSD. So, that’s obviously a good thing. If you happen to try it on a super old system, you can let me know your experience in the comments section at the bottom of this article.
What’s The Difference Between The ‘Ultimate Lite’ edition & Free ‘Lite’ edition?
Make no mistake, you can download Zorin OS 15 for free.
However, there’s a separate ‘Ultimate’ edition which is basically meant to support the developers and the project. In addition to that, it also bundles a lot of pre-installed software as an “ultimate” package for your computer.
So, if you purchase the Ultimate edition, you get access to both the lite and full version.
In case you do not want to pay for it, you can still opt for the free editions (Core, Lite, Education) depending on your requirements. You can learn more about it on their download page.
How To Download Zorin OS 15 Lite?
You can just head on to its official download webpage and scroll down to find the Zorin OS 15 lite edition.
You will find 32-bit/64-bit ISOs available, download the one you require.
Installing Zorin OS is similar to installing Ubuntu.
Wrapping Up
While Zorin OS 15 is already a great offering as a Linux distribution to Windows/macOS veterans, the new Lite edition surely turns more eyes to it.
Have you tried the ‘Lite’ edition yet? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.
