When comparing Nautilus (AKA Gnome Files) vs Polo, the Slant community recommends Nautilus (AKA Gnome Files) for most people. In the question“What are the best GUI file managers for UNIX-like systems?” Nautilus (AKA Gnome Files) is ranked 9th while Polo is ranked 13th. The most important reason people chose Nautilus (AKA Gnome Files) is:
On recent versions of GNOME, you can click the Files entry in the panel to access the a specific location (remote or local), connect to a certain server (FTP, SFTP, SAMBA, etc.), access your bookmarks, open a new window, as well as to change its default functionality.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Allows you to access remote or local locations
On recent versions of GNOME, you can click the Files entry in the panel to access the a specific location (remote or local), connect to a certain server (FTP, SFTP, SAMBA, etc.), access your bookmarks, open a new window, as well as to change its default functionality.
Pro Widely supported
The program is distributed as a single source archive, which can be configured, compiled and installed on almost any Linux flavor. There are no binary files for a specific Linux distribution, but you can install it directly from the default software channels of your operating system.
Pro Google drive integration
Pro Easy to use and familiar user interface for Ubuntu users
The user interface of Files is very familiar to Ubuntu users, most probably because Canonical still uses Nautilus (an old version of it) as the default file manager for its world’s most popular free operating system, Ubuntu Linux.
It split into two parts, a sidebar and the main file viewer. While you already know what the latter can do for you, the sidebar offers quick access to Places, Devices and Network locations, as well as any other bookmarks that you can add whenever you want.
Pro Convenient file moving progress
Nautilus shows the progress of file move operations in the top right. This doesn't get in your way. You can keep using the window while the operation is progressing.
Pro Fully supports DPI
Pro Purposeful layout choices
Polo wants people to get the file manager they want, but it's not awash with granular layout options that take ages to understand. First select whether you want one, two, or four panes, and then select a format for each pane of either List, Icon, Tiled, or Media. That's it, you're done.
Pro Installs smoothly on Debian, Redhat and Arch based distributions
File managers in Linux have a nasty propensity for being closely tied to the distribution family from which they arose. Using Polo allows you to have an identical file management experience when shifting between machines from different branches of the Linux tree.
Pro Device management
Quickly mount and unmount devices from the sidebar, including support for locking and unlocking LUKS encrypted devices.
Pro Youtube-dl integration
Just paste a YouTube URL into a folder and Polo will download the best quality format of it and save it in that folder.
Pro Archive browsing and creation
Browse archive files as those they were just another folder, dragging and dropping files in and out of them at will while the backend uses the appropriate tools to manage the archive file itself. Archive creation includes a rich assortment of controls over compression formats and structure.
Pro Image file actions
Rotate, resize, optimize, convert formats, save for the web and many other handy features all right in the context menu.
Pro ISO file tools
Mount ISO files to loop devices with just two clicks, or spin them up as a QEMU KVM instance, and for portability there's also an option to write them to USB flash drives using a GUI dialog.
Pro Advanced PDF file controls
Perform Merge and Split operations on PDF files without needing another file handler all from the context menu. Rotate and Password Protection settings are also expressed there.
Pro Cloud storage support
Includes its own rclone macros for adding cloud storage access to the list of browsable locations that just works, a welcome relief in the sea of hacks which provide those features elsewhere in Linux. Currently supported: Dropbox, Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive, Amazon Cloud Drive / Amazon S3, Openstack Swift (Rackspace Cloud Files, Memset Memstore, OVH), Hubic, Backblaze B2, Yandex Disk
Pro Views
Supports up to four panes, plus a tree-style side panel and tabs.
Pro Terminal emulation
Built-in terminal pop-up.
Pro Launchpad PPA available
Debian-based distributions can leverage the apt package management system to keep Polo updated by adding the approved PPA to their apt sources, simplifying installation as well.
Pro Permissions management
Features a file properties side panel to easily assess and modify permissions.
Cons
Con Mostly unconfigurable
There are not many ways to configure Nautilus to fit your needs. Besides what can be seen in the settings button you can't configure it further.
Con Gradually losing its features
Unlike most software, where new features are added over time, Nautilus (along with other Gnome applications) tends to lose features, and for unclear reasons.
Con Doesn't support "open as root"
Con No Tree View option any more
This is a crucial feature for my daily work with a file manager and without a Tree View option a file manager seems pointless to me.
The reason for dropping this feature is weird. Quoted from here:
"It is the list view after all. Tree models don't work well on
touch and it isn't consistent with the file chooser."
Con Slow
Seems to be one of few file managers that can take several seconds to open.
Con Comes with a ton of dependencies
Con Freemium model
Many of the best features mentioned as pros are only available after a one-time donation of USD$10 or more. Until then you just have a fast, good-looking and otherwise forgettable file manager.
Con No drag and drop
You can't drag from one view to another.
Con Load loop
Slow opening with annoying 'load loop' dialog.
Con Lengthy beta cycle
Polo has been in the beta stage of development for longer than hoped for, and while mostly stable, isn't yet ready to be promoted as a rock-solid replacement for file managers such as Dolphin and Nautilus.