Hello all,
Just to provide some background, I've been using Linux since 2000.
My distro experience is somewhat limited as I've only used RedHat-based and Debian-based distros like RedHat 6, Mandrake, Ubuntu (and its various flavors), CentOS and pure Debian. Over the years I've used multiple desktop environments, starting with KDE 2 and 3, Windowmaker, then Gnome 2 and MATE, XFCE and finally KDE 5. I've used KDE 4 when it was released with Kubuntu, but it was a complete disaster. Unity was really not my cup of tea either. And I've tried using Gnome 3, but it feels more like a tablet-oriented UI than anything else.
Lately with the rise of Linux gaming, people are asking around about what's the best distro for a newbie gamer. A lot of people have been recommending Fedora, or even OpenSUSE tumbleweed for their more up to date software packages. Ubuntu less so because a lot of people are disgruntled about Snaps or the telemetry data sent to Canonical. But, a few that stood out to me were POP! OS, Endeavour OS and Elementary OS. So I decided to try them out.
I started with Endeavour OS because it is based on Arch which gained a lot in popularity. Endeavour OS is supposed to be more user-friendly and stable compared to Arch which is more for power users with bleeding edge software packages that can often contain bugs. I've never used Arch or any Arch-based distros before. The installation was simple and I really liked that it offered to select which desktop environment to install with a pretty big list of options. I also liked the welcome app and all its options including links to Arch-specific documentation like the package management system with video tutorials. I picked KDE for the desktop which is pretty standard. The OS was very snappy in my VM which was set up with 16GB RAM and 12 cores in Qemu. I was able to change resolution pretty easily without any issue and could get right to work. However, Endeavour might not be suitable for a Linux beginner. A lot of the tools and configurations are command-line based which is not the most user-friendly. I also find the packaging system to be a bit complicated with Pacman and Yay compared to others, but I haven't messed around with it too much. I was disappointed in the lack of a UI tool for browsing and managing software packages.
Then I tried POP! OS. This distro is Ubuntu-based which I'm already pretty comfortable with and is very popular. It has a lot of existing documentation and a huge community behind it. The installation was also pretty simple. The deskop is Gnome 3 with a custom theme, extensions and dock. I personally never really liked Gnome because everything takes so much space on the desktop. Window title bars and other controls seem too big. POP! has this same issue in my opinion. Everything looks big and kind of cartoon-y. Like it's a desktop meant for kids. But since this distro was aimed at gamers, I guess it supposed to look fun in that way. One thing I like about Gnome 3 however, is that there aren't a lot of customizations available out of the box, which ensures everyone has the same experience. Too many customizations, like with KDE, can be a big overwhelming and if you mess around too much you can end up with a broken UI. I really like the POP Shop app as well which gives a good list of top picks. And the presentation is very nice and clean with a beautiful design. Most tasks can be done through a graphical app. I think the only app missing here would be something like Synaptic or Muon to manage Debian packages without using the command line. Overall it's a very simple and easy to use OS for any beginner, although new Linux users might be confused by the desktop environment that is very different from Windows and not quite like the Mac OS. It could probably use a welcome app like Endeavour with a couple of tutorial videos to guide new users around the UI.
Finally, I tried Elementary OS. This was my favourite out of the three, even though it had some issues out of the box. This is another Ubuntu-based distro, so again I'm very familiar with it. The people behind Elementary OS wanted to provide an experience as close to the Mac OS as possible without getting sued. And I gotta say, they really achieved that goal. The installation was very easy. And when I logged in for the first time, I was very pleased with the desktop environment. The desktop is basically highly customized Gnome 3 desktop. But, they made some tweaks to the UI that make it look a lot more elegant. Unlike in a default Gnome 3 desktop or the POP! desktop mentioned above, the various UI elements don't take as much space. The dock is clean and very easy to use and very reminiscent of the Mac OS dock. Anyone who ever used a Mac before will be in their element with this distro. I love the overall simplicity. The file browser is awesome and has the same column-based browsing as in the Mac OS, which is something I always envied. There's also a bunch of keyboard shortcuts like the Mac OS. You can get a list on screen just by pressing the META (Win) key by itself, which is great for new users. The system tray is simple with a practical notification area. The App Center reminds me of the POP Shop. Actually I think they're both kind of the same with a bit of re-branding and different suggestions. However, I was not able to install Muon or Synaptic out of the box to manage Debian packages and repos. The default browser out of the box is Gnome Web (Epiphany) and it had issues rendering pages right away. I had to install Flatseal through a Flatpak using the command line to modify permissions to make it work. I immediately installed Firefox through a Flatpak afterwards, though the browser was available in the AppCenter. Another bug was with the docker, which hides by default when you maximize a window. When moving the pointer to the bottom of the screen, the dock wouldn't pop up as expected. So I had to make it show at all times through the system settings. Speaking of the system settings, I love its simplicity. There's practically no way you can mess up your desktop but you can still tweak a few elements. Honestly, Elementary OS is what Gnome 3 should look like out of the box. It's so clean and beautiful. I honestly fell in love with that environment. I am highly considering using it as a daily driver.
I use Firefox with ublock on my phone and I get no ads. Or I watch them in Newpipe.