ConnexionGNOME 49: New Apps, Lock Screen Features and Design Changes
GNOME 49 lands next week, bringing a fresh set of features and design tweaks aimed at making everyday desktop life on Linux smoother, sharper, and more consistent — the best of which I run through below. Ubuntu users get (most of) GNOME 49’s new features in the upcoming Ubuntu 25.10 release, out on 9 October 2025. A beta build is out next week for anyone eager to have an early-bird encounter with the changes on offer. Each new GNOME release is given a codename, a bit like Ubuntu or macOS. Except, it’s not animals or California landmarks GNOME uses, but […]
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A rundown of new features in development for Firefox, including visual image search, more sponsored results in the URL bar, and (of course) more AI integration. 
Spotify Premium users can now stream music in lossless audio quality at no extra cost. The desktop Spotify Linux app is likely to add support for it too.
Ubuntu 25.10 daily builds switch to Dracut by default, after Feature Freeze Exception granted to replace initramfs-tools for a more modern boot process.
Stop distracting wallpaper movement in GNOME Shell workspace transitions with Static Workspace Background extension, keepings the background fixed.
Linux kernel 6.17 is now baked-in to the latest Ubuntu 25.10 daily builds, which means this will be the kernel version the next Ubuntu releases ships with.
Mozilla is FINALLY pulling the plug on 32-bit Firefox builds for Linux, a decade after Google Chrome did the same. Why now? It says they're getting hard to build.
Euphonica is a slick new MPD client for Linux, written in Rust and GTK4/libadwaita. It's currently in beta, but testing is easier as it's finally arrived on Flathub.
Yaru, Ubuntu's default theme, has received a refresh ahead of October's 25.10 release. The artwork drop adds new app icons, and improves theme consistency.
KDE has launched its own immutable Linux distribution in alpha. It acts as a 'reference implementation', offering atomic updates, Flatpak apps and more.
Raspberry Pi has begun selling a 1TB M.2 2230 SSD for use with the Raspberry Pi 5. It joins the company's PCIe Gen 3 256 & 512GB SSDs announced earlier this year.
Firefox Nightly builds add CoPilot to the chatbot sidebar, expanding the browser's range of third-party AI service integrations. Plus: new New Tab Page widgets.
A new version of miracle-wm, the Mir-based compositor/tiling window manager looking to rival Hyprland, is out with a welcome set of improvements.
GNOME 49 re-enables X11 session support in GDM after it broke the ability to launch other desktop environments. It plans full removal in GNOME 50.
The new Linux Mint 22.2 release is available for download. It features theme changes, fingerprint support, and updated apps. More details inside.
Warp, the Agentic Development Environment, for Windows, macOS and Linux has launched a suite of new features to improve prompt-based coding. 
US judge in antitrust case rules Google can keep paying Mozilla and other companies for default search placement, but bans exclusive contracts.
GIMP 3.1.4 is out, a fresh development snapshot of what will become the next major stable release. It introduces two long-awaited new features.
This is a recap of Linux app releases in August 2025, taking in updates to Qemu, Constrict, Gradia, Zen Browser, PeaZip and more!
SuperFile adds colour and clarity to terminal file management. If you're looking for a modern alternative to Midnight Commander on Ubuntu, it's worth trying.
LibreOffice 25.8.1 brings almost 100 bug, crash and other regression fixes. This is the first of several planned point updates to the latest stable release series.
Bitwig Studio 6 has hit beta with overhauled automation, new audition tool, project-wide key signatures, and other improvements to core DAW workflows.
NetPeek is GTK4/libadwaita app for fuss-free network scanning on Linux desktops. A user-friendly alternative to nmap for finding devices and open ports.
Mozilla replaces slow WebAssembly with native C++ for Firefox AI features, netting faster performance for features like Smart Tab Groups and alt-text generation.