Favorite Blend of Linux Desktop

[Xiahou]

Well, MATE is forked from Gnome 2 and is thought to be the more stable and less flashy of the two.

Cinnamon is based on Gnome 3 and is supposed to be flashier and it seems to get more updates (a MATE fan might argue that's because it has more bugs).

MATE will probably be lighter on resources, if that's your concern- but Cinnamon will have more Zazz!.

If you want to see some side-by-sides before you decide, check youtube for comparison videos.