Lakka vs Ubuntu LTS
When comparing Lakka vs Ubuntu LTS, the Slant community recommends Lakka for most people. In the question“What is the best OS for gaming?” Lakka is ranked 13th while Ubuntu LTS is ranked 16th. The most important reason people chose Lakka is:
Most controllers are configured automatically.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Good support for controllers
Most controllers are configured automatically.
Pro Built on top of RetroArch
It's based on RetroArch OS
Pro Cores (emulator support) can be downloaded via interface
It's easy to add new emulators, even if you compile them yourself.
Pro First to get new Retroarch features implemented directly
Because they're part of the RA team, of course. :)
Pro Highly configurable
A lot of customizations and advanced options available.
Pro Supports different frontends
Lakka has different frontends in case your IoT is too slow for the default one.
Pro Different interfaces for different scenarios
Some interfaces like rgui makes the OS possible to run fine even in the Raspberry Pi 1st gen.
Pro Just works out of the box
Lots of support for hardware, lots of pre-installed software, and a smooth install process means less time downloading drivers, less time digging through configuration files, and less time deciding on software to use just to get up and running. It also means less time digging through forums looking for support.
Pro Good PPA repositories available
PPA repositories allow you to install the latest version of your preferred software while keeping the rest of the operating system "stable".
Pro Great Long Term Support release schedule (2 years)
This allows for users to always have a new supported release available without long unkown wait times in between.
Pro Lots of support
As the most popular Linux distribution, there's a wide range of sources for support online if you ever need help, including the Ubuntu Wiki, Ubuntu Forums and the Ask Ubuntu Stack Exchange site.
Pro Most users are already familiar with it
Ubuntu is the go-to Linux distro for most people, so there is a sense of familiarity and comfort in using something they have used before.
Cons
Con Terrible User-Interface
The interface includes various submenus which makes it very hard to use
Con Needs the whole Disk
There is no option to install the system in dual-boot with another OS on one hard disk drive.
Con Adding new games and scans can be difficult if you don't have some knowledge
You need some knowledge if you want to add a different rom (lakka, like retroarch, supports only no-intro naming, there's no generic scan like emulationstation).
Con No built-in GUI to manage Bluetooth devices
It needs to be done over the CLI.
Con Uses RetroArch
A multi-emulator needs to make compromises.
Con No persistent BlueTooth pairing
Every time you restart Lakka it will lose all of its BlueTooth devices.
Con Relatively high system requirements
The default Unity desktop environment is a resource hog which requires hardware accelerated graphics rendering in order to run smoothly, making out of the box Ubuntu unsuitable for low end systems and older hardware. Even mildly aged hardware, you'll get far better performance out of a lighter desktop environment like LXDE or XFCE.