KDE Plasma 5.26 released with many new desktop and widget improvements

KDE Community has released the latest version of its flagship Plasma Linux desktop, version 5.26. This release introduces several new desktop widgets and enhanced customizability.

New widgets are the main highlight in KDE Plasma 5.26
KDE Community took to Twitter to announce the KDE Plasma 5.26 release, showcasing its new features: The highlight of KDE Plasma 5.26 this time around is the desktop widgets.

KDE Plasma Release Announcement 5.26

"The clock and calendar in the dashboard, the notifier, the KDE Connect screen, the volume controls - these are all widgets that can be added elsewhere, moved, removed and in a true Plasma style , modified to the highest degree" - the notice page said.

The developers even posted a short video to YouTube highlighting the new widgets in action:

There is a new widget that debuted in Plasma 5.26: Timer. As the name suggests, this is an app for setting timers for things like making tea or boiling eggs.

What's new in Plasma 5.26?
Widgets are not the only new feature in KDE Plasma 5.26. The latest release also brings some tweaks to the desktop.

The desktop will now match the theme the user has selected. Dark theme will have dark wallpaper and light theme will have light wallpaper. There are also some live wallpapers.

KDE developers have also made some tweaks to the new big-screen TV interface, which first debuted in beta 5.26. Two new apps launched as soon as Bigscreen was out of beta. The first is Aura, a web browser optimized for use with remotes. The other is Plank Player, a media player. Both tools are required for use with the TV.

When will users get KDE Plasma 5.26?
Now that KDE Plasma 5.26 is out, Linux distribution maintainers will have to integrate it into their systems. For the impatient, KDE Community directs users to live images that they can download and extract to USB to enjoy before their distribution officially makes it available.

The KDE Plasma features let the community know that the project is still evolving. KDE is competing with another major Linux desktop project, GNOME . Widgets and other features will likely give KDE fans the "weapon" to compete with GNOME in the battle to change the look of the desktop.