Sponsors of elementary OS now have early access to the next major version of the Ubuntu-based desktop Linux operating system.
elementary OS 8 is the next major update, following on from this year’s elementary OS 7.x series. It is based on the packages from the Ubuntu 24.04 repositories, but as that release isn’t out until April a final release of elementary OS 8 will likely be early summer at the soonest.
But as ever with elementary: there is no fixed release date until a release date is ready to be fixed in.
With early access builds out, let’s look a what’s planned for the new version.
What to expect in elementary OS 8?
While not all of the new features planned for the next elementary OS update are yet know (it’s still got many, many months of development to come) there is a one rather “ambitious” goal in mind: using the Wayland display server by default.
Switching to Wayland has been in the works for a while and stands to deliver a wealth of benefits to elementary OS users including improved performance, better security, and allow the distro’s DE to handle more diverse display setups — maybe even touchscreens?
As a result of the transition to Wayland that’s underway the Pantheon desktop environment is getting a brand new dock.
The current dock, Plank, has a number of ongoing issues with Wayland. Rather than rewrite to retrofit newer APIs on to an older codebase, it sounds like devs have chosen to a create a new Wayland-first dock which better integrates with their window manger, Gala.
So that’s going to be very interesting.
A makeover in the Multitasking View delivers some visual oomph, with the screen now using a blurred version of your wallpaper, adding rounded corners to workspace cards, and enhancing support for light and dark mode detail differences.
The Pantheon desktop is a GTK-based one and effort to port components and apps to GTK 4 began in the OS 7 release and that work continues on in the OS 8 cycle. This has involved “pretty major rewrites”, code modernisation, and design updates.
Captive Network Assistant, Initial Setup, and Videos have been successfully ported to GTK 4; the GTK 4 port of AppCenter is said to be ‘near completion’; and work on porting both System Settings and the Files file manager sounds like it’s coming along at a clip.
Elementary has split system updates out of AppCenter and moved to them to the System page in the System Settings tool. The implementation looks slick, and is said to includes an option to download updates automatically and tell you if security updates are included.
We can also expect to see more apps benefit from “responsive design patterns” to help ensure user experiences remain top-tier regardless of window or screen size.
Finally (for now), a more tentative plan is to overhaul the “indicator area” with the addition of a Quick Settings menu. A centralised hub for common settings is a, well, common thing in desktop operating systems these days, with macOS, Windows, and GNOME Shell all offering them.
I can’t wait to see what an an elementary-esque spin on the concept looks like — and it should help free up some horizontal space in the top panel too.
Other changes panned include support for multi-touch gestures, showing (optional) weather info in the date time applet, replacing Zeitgeist with Tracker, syncing display settings with the greeter, implementing colour picker and screenshot portals, and more.
Want to try Elementary OS 8?
Early access builds of elementary OS 8 are not stable or recommended for use on production hardware in day-to-day usage, but do offer a way to test new features ahead of time, find bugs, and, for app developers, ensure anything they build works with the new release.
You can get access to the Early Access programme by setting up a monthly sponsorship to elementary OS which helps fund its continued existence in addition to giving you some testing snapshots to toy with.