Manjaro 26.1 'Bian-May' released via Stable update with Linux kernel 7.1 & KDE Plasma 6.7

Manjaro Linux has finalized the software stack for version 26.1 “Bian-May” with its latest Stable branch update. Existing Stable users can move to the new 26.1 package state through a regular full system update, with no separate upgrade or reinstallation required. The release builds on earlier previews that included GNOME 50 and Xfce 4.20, while the KDE edition now identifies as Manjaro 26.1 and includes KDE Plasma 6.7.4 with Linux kernel 7.1. COSMIC Desktop 1.5 is also available through the updated repositories.

Linux 7.1 replaces the now end of life Linux 7.0 as the main newer kernel option, with versions 6.18, 6.12, 6.6, and 6.1 also available, plus Linux 7.2 rc7 for testing. The Stable repositories received updates to more than 1,000 packages, including GStreamer, Bazaar, OpenSearch, and Syncthing.

The release also moves Manjaro to Python 3.14, requiring some AUR packages that depend on the previous Python version to be rebuilt. Updated kernels are expected to address recent AMD GPU regressions, while NVIDIA’s 590 driver series no longer supports Pascal and older GPUs. Users with affected hardware are advised to switch to the legacy 580xx drivers.