Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

KDE VS RetroArch

Compare KDE VS RetroArch and see what are their differences

KDE logo KDE

The KDE® Community is a free software community dedicated to creating an open and user-friendly computing experience, offering an advanced graphical desktop, a wide variety of applications for communication, work, education and entertainment and …

RetroArch logo RetroArch

RetroArch is a frontend for emulators, game engines and media players.
  • KDE Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-23
  • RetroArch Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-12-22

KDE videos

KDE Plasma 5 Deep Dive (Late 2019) | Linux Desktop Reviews

More videos:

  • Review - Review - Manjaro KDE
  • Review - Debian 10 KDE review

RetroArch videos

RetroArch - Getting Started! Your Ultimate Retro Gaming PC! [Setup and Demonstration]

More videos:

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to KDE and RetroArch)
Linux
100 100%
0% 0
Gaming
0 0%
100% 100
Operating Systems
100 100%
0% 0
Emulators
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

Share your experience with using KDE and RetroArch. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare KDE and RetroArch

KDE Reviews

6 Best Linux Desktop Environments to Try in 2022
KDE is also popular as the Plasma desktop. KDE is a very lightweight desktop and highly customizable. Now you can connect your phone with the computer via KDE Connect. KDE’s browser integration connects your phone to your browser to establish a smooth communication fast.
Top 10 Best Desktop Environments in 2020
I call it the super DE for a reason. If you compare KDE with a group of people, KDE is the richest and the heaviest one. In terms of UI customization, KDE has it all. From transparent windows to blurred backgrounds, glass-look, to animations, and much more.
The 12 Best Linux Desktop Environments
KDE Plasma is one of the best Linux desktop environments for those who want to play with their system’s interface. KDE offers various features, but some users always complain that it is not stable enough, and it is also a bit heavier. Apart from it, all on-screen components work as a widget, which is movable and resizable.
Source: linuxhint.com
The Best Desktop Environments For Linux (We Tested Them So That You Don’t Have To)
Some Linux distros using KDE as the default are openSUSE, Kubuntu and KDE Neon. You may also refer to one of our tutorials to install KDE on Ubuntu, if that’s what you want.
Source: itsfoss.com

RetroArch Reviews

Best DS Emulator: Are These Emulators Safe And Legal To Use?
RetroArch also supports a wide range of controller types, making it a great choice for gamers who want to use their favorite controller.
Source: appletoo.us
5 Best Nintendo DS Emulators for PC
It has highlights like RetroArch are shaders, netplay, rewinding, next-frame response times, run ahead, machine translation, blind accessibility features, and much more.
Best emulators for Android in 2023
RetroArch is a popular open-source front-end for emulators. If you’re into playing retro games, RetroArch is your one-stop shop for all your emulating needs. It's not an emulator by itself but instead allows you to add "cores" that act as the backend to emulate several legacy consoles. While most of its most popular emulators are already covered here by dedicated apps, it...
5 of the Best GameBoy Advance (GBA) Emulators for Android
RetroArch is a poster child worldwide of emulation, specifically due to the fact that it’s not precisely an emulator. The retroArch is best refer to as a solitary, unified application where you can communicate with other emulators.
4 Free Open Source Game Emulators For Windows PC, Linux, and macOS
In addition to this, you are able to run original game discs (CDs) from RetroArch. RetroArch has advanced features like shaders, netplay, rewinding, next-frame response times, runahead, machine translation, blind accessibility features, and more! What systems does it play?

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, KDE should be more popular than RetroArch. It has been mentiond 77 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

KDE mentions (77)

  • Anyone using the KDE webchat?
    I am trying to use the KDE webchat on element at https://webchat.kde.org/#/login. I made an account at identity.kde.org, but it does not let me log in to the chat client. Create an account does not work and asks me to create an account at kde.org. Does anyone know how this is supposed to work? Thanks. Source: 8 months ago
  • Looking for user-friendly personal computing oriented distro
    This is a hard one, but after giving it a decent amount of thought I've narrowed it down to openSUSE Tumbleweed with either GNOME or KDE as the desktop environment. Source: about 1 year ago
  • KDE/XMonad work laptop
    You need to be running xorg, not wayland, first of all. You can follow the tutorial at kde.org: https://userbase.kde.org/Tutorials/Using_Other_Window_Managers_with_Plasma. Source: about 1 year ago
  • Should i switch?
    I'm glad to hear that you use Krita (and I may assume you use Blender for animations). Both are free and open source software that is available on Linux (even better, Krita is made by the KDE project, makers of all sorts of open source projects, including Plasma, one of the most complete user interfaces for Linux out there). Source: about 1 year ago
  • KDE publishes the new "KDE for developers" page, where you can find advice on and links to tools, frameworks and libraries that will help you build powerful and cool-looking apps using KDE technologies
    I like the concept of these "KDE for ..." pages, I think the whole https://kde.org/for/ collection should be promoted way more prominently on the front page https://kde.org/. Also, a lot of regionalized "/for" pages lists only 3 (out of 4) subpages, and some even list only a single one, this seems like a major oversight (at least list them in English if their entries weren't translated to other languages). Source: about 1 year ago
View more

RetroArch mentions (20)

  • RetroArch cannot be found on the PlayStore, the first result is a copycat. It is just me?
    No, isn't just you. Every 64-bit phone haves the Play Store Retroarch available, the 32-bits no. But you can still download the 32-bit version on the Retroarch website. Source: about 1 year ago
  • Cause of the intrusion has been found and isolated. Sites are operational again.
    It was only the download links on retroarch.com on the Platforms page that got (briefly) redirected for a few hours. That should all be safe now. Source: about 1 year ago
  • Malicious download links?
    Yes, only the retroarch.com and libretro.com websites were affected. Source: about 1 year ago
  • Recent update from supposed hackers
    I went to retroarch.com and it said "discord.gg/evaderz is big haxors" its unrespectable. Source: about 1 year ago
  • Latest RetroArch on Xiaomi Mi box
    I've got installed RetroArch Plus from Google Play on my Xiaomi Mi box 4k and I want to update it to the latest version. I downloaded apk from retroarch.com but when I use apk installer to update it say is not compatible. I removed version from Google Play but fresh install 1.15.0 is not compatible too. I tried 32 and 64 version. What I'm doing wrong? Is any other AndroidTV version? Source: about 1 year ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing KDE and RetroArch, you can also consider the following products

Xfce - Xfce is a lightweight desktop environment for UNIX-like operating systems. It aims to be fast and low on system resources, while still being visually appealing and user friendly.

OpenEmu - Console and Arcade video game emulator for macOS.

GNOME - An easy and elegant way to use your computer, GNOME is designed to put you in control and get things done.

LaunchBox - LaunchBox is a portable, box-art-based games database and launcher for DOSBox, emulators, arcade cabinets, and PC Games. Download it free!

KDE Plasma Desktop - Plasma Workspaces is the umbrella term for all graphical environments provided by KDE.

BSNES - bsnes is a Super Nintendo (SNES) emulator focused on performance, features, and ease of use.